A Love Like You
by SourPatchKid1985
Summary: Brittany and Santana have been best friends since they could remember. With Brittany's constant struggle to focus and Santana's overbearing attitude, find out how through the years they came to be together.
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

**8 Years Old**

When she was little nothing could keep her focused long enough to sustain. Her blonde hair would support half a braid, the rest hanging limp down her shoulders while she moved on to the next idea that flooded her mind. She was naturally thin, but because she was so active and never-stopping, she had a build that looked like a gymnast. Her parents were puzzled as what to do with her because she had been their first child. They didn't know if it were normal for a child to be up all hours of night dancing around her bedroom with her stuffed animals. Did all children bounce their legs up and down at warp speed while watching cartoons? Did they wiggle from side to side in their sleep the entire night? For years they took turns chasing the little girl around, trying to get her to focus. When their second and third child did almost the exact opposite of their first, they knew something had to be done.

"She's like a little firecracker, I can't keep up with her. Don't get me wrong she's my little angel, but we can't get her to focus for more than a couple minutes," her father, Mr. William Pierce, said while he and his wife entertained their friends and neighbors with coffee and cake one afternoon.

Mr. Hugo Lopez smiled as he ran his fingers over the stubble he forgot to shave that morning. It was rare for him to have the opportunity to not go without shaving so when he did he felt completely relaxed. "She'll grow out of it," he complied.

"I can't say I don't agree with you Will. Brittany's like a little energizer bunny. She keeps Santana happy though. I only ever see the girl really smile when she's with Brittany," Mrs. Maribel Lopez commented, pulling on her husband's hand to stop his actions.

Holly, Brittany's mother looked out the back glass sliding door smiling at the sight. Brittany and Santana were chasing Brittany's younger siblings Tommy and Jessica around the yard in what looked like a game of tag. "Santana's the only one who does calm her down," she noted.

Santana had been Brittany's friend since the two remembered. She was the same age but acted much older and sometimes their parents would treat her as if she weren't an eight year old like Brittany. They expected her to know better and to keep Brittany in line. But she never saw it that way. Brittany was magical and she knew that Brittany could take just as good if not better care of her.

Opposite to her friend, Santana had well-groomed brunette hair that was pulled into a side ponytail with a pretty pink bow. Her skin tone was much darker than Brittany's pale form and Brittany often commented of how her eyes matched the color of Brittany's father's coffee in the morning. She was slightly smaller but both fit into the same clothes and shoes. Although she didn't have the energy of her friend, she was genetically skinny and built as if she exercised every day. Like Brittany, Santana's parents had their own worries about their only child. She was spoiled and had an attitude that neither parent knew where it came from. She acted like she was seventeen and the only time she allowed herself to be a child was with Brittany.

"Have you considered taking her to a specialist?" Hugo asked, not really set on the idea but just suggesting.

Maribel nearly spit cake crumbs from her mouth. "Hugo they did not ask for your opinion," she said, looking to Brittany's parents with apologetic eyes.

"No Maribel I was actually going to ask Hugo. I mean he is a professional," Holly encouraged, not wanting her friend to feel bad. She knew her husband was touchy about the subject, but she was at her wits end.

Will ran his hands through his wiry hair. "You just don't want something to be wrong with your kid you know," he said, shaking tears from his eyes. "I mean she is a little behind for her age but she's not stupid or anything. She just can't focus to learn like the other kids. I mean ask her anything about the Pilgrims and she can give you a play by play," he defended, not wanting Hugo, doctor or not, telling him to bring his child for help.

Holly grabbed her husband's hand. "Will, we've made excuses long enough. I mean you've had kids that acted like Britt in your classes before haven't you?" she asked gently, rubbing her fingers over his knuckles.

Will shook his head. "Holly, Brittany does not need a specialist. She's just an energetic kid. Like Hugo said, she'll outgrow it," he argued, putting his foot down. Yes he had kids like Brittany in his classes before. But he was high school teacher and those kids were trouble. Brittany wasn't like that. She didn't do the things she did on purpose. He didn't want her hopped up on some medication that would make her like a zombie. He wanted his little girl to be who she was.

Holly looked back outside. Tommy and Jessica had moved on to the swings while Brittany and Santana were rolling around on the grass. She let out a deep sigh.

* * *

"Britt let's do something else," she laughed on her back while trying to steady Brittany's tickling hands above her. She knew her styled hair had been messed up and mud had to have been on her backside, but she would do anything to make Brittany happy.

Brittany laughed, straddled above Santana's waist. She listened to Santana's instructions and withheld her hands from Santana's underarms. Smiling, she remained seated on Santana's lower stomach. "Okay. Wanna play hide and seek?" she asked excitedly, lightly bouncing up and down on Santana as if she were a trampoline.

Santana's eyes widened. Last time they played hide and seek Brittany forgot she was supposed to find Santana and left her hiding in the closet for almost an hour. "Britt can't we just watch TV or something?" she asked, not wanting to get any more sweaty than she already was.

Brittany jumped up from Santana's lap. "Okay. But first let me show you the caterpillar house by my dad's garden. It's amazing San," she said running over to the garden before Santana could even answer.

Sighing, Santana pulled the bow from her hair and placed it over her left wrist. She winced as she rose from the ground, her body aching from the rough play she and Brittany had been doing. She watched from her spot, confused as to why Brittany already moved on from the caterpillars and was climbing a tree. "Britt what are you doing? You're gonna get in trouble," she called.

Brittany was halfway up the tree when she heard Santana's voice. She looked back with a huge smile. "I saw a bird's nest San and you know what that means," she called back while waving her hand over.

Before Santana could even take a step, the back door slid open. "Brittany what did I tell you about climbing that tree," her mother yelled, lifting her hands in the air.

Brittany paused mid-climb to turn and face her mother. "I forgot," she admitted softly, not wanting to disappoint her mother.

Holly sighed and turned to Santana. "San honey would you try to get her to play a board game or something with you inside?" she asked as if Santana was the cure all for everything Brittany.

Santana grimaced. "The last time we played a game she swallowed one of the pieces member," she recalled. She didn't want to get her friend in even more trouble, but she also didn't want a repeat of Brittany's father going into extreme panic mode again. She had never seen her own father run so fast. He dashed into the family room and gave Brittany the Heimlich. The upside to it was now everyone between both families knew how to give it, including Brittany.

"Right," Holly remembered while keeping her attention on Brittany who was slowly climbing down from the tree. She smiled when Brittany ran to her and hugged her around her waist. "You need to be more careful sweetie," she whispered down to her, gently kissing the top of her head.

Brittany pulled away from her mother's hold, a bright smile still on her face. "Want to see the caterpillar house mommy?" she asked while taking a hold on her mother's hand.

Holly smiled. "Sure baby," she said sending a soft smile to Santana before following behind her daughter.

Santana stared after them wondering if she was supposed to wonder about her friend's sometimes awkward behavior. She knew one thing. No matter what, she would have Brittany's back until the end of time.

**12 Years Old**

"Mr. and Mrs. Pierce Brittany is a great child. She's polite and sweet and good hearted," the principal started, sending the worried parents a concerned smile.

Will swallowed heavily, gripping his wife's hand tighter as they listened to the man in front of them. He had to come over to the middle school on his lunch break to have a meeting with Brittany's principal. As a teacher, he knew family meetings were generally not for good behavior.

"The problem is she is disruptive. She interrupts the teacher and calls out when it's not appropriate. She gets up from her seat and wanders around the classroom when she feels like it," he continued.

"Mr. Seamark I don't want you to think we don't discipline Brittany because we do. But she's not a bad kid. She's been like this since she was a baby," Holly tried to explain.

Mr. Seamark held up his hand. "In no way do I think Brittany is a bad kid Mrs. Pierce. She is the friendliest student I know. I brought you here out of concern not to punish Brittany," he said, wincing at the look on their faces. He guessed they've heard concern about their daughter before.

"Brittany's just a little energetic. We'll work on it with her," Will promised, glaring at the look his wife was giving him.

"Will how many more excuses are you going to make?" she asked, tears forming in her sky blue eyes.

"Mr. and Mrs. Pierce. We've had the child study team observe Brittany and it seems as if Brittany has a bit of a focus problem," he informed carefully.

Will stood up from his seat. "What gives you a right to analyze my kid? I think we know her a little better than you," he argued, pulling away while Holly tried to pull him back down to his seat.

"Mr. Pierce it has come to my attention that Brittany has been observed before. That the information I am about to give you isn't new. You've heard it before," he continued with a calm collected voice.

Holly wiped under her eyes. "They've diagnosed her with ADHD before. Will didn't want to put her on the medication they've suggested. He didn't like the side effects," she explained.

Mr. Seamark shook his head with understanding. "I respect your concern Mr. Pierce. They have done a lot of research and studies on the medication to perfect it over the years. When was the last time you were informed about it?" he asked gently.

"When she was eight," Holly answered for them.

He nodded. "I have the number of a great specialist who could potentially help Brittany out. He could meet with Brittany and determine what would be best for her as far as treating the problem," he said cautiously.

Will shook his head. "She does not have a problem. She's just a little hyper," Will said through seethed teeth.

Holly stood up near her husband, wrapping her arm around his waist. "Honey maybe this doctor can help Britt," she said as soft and gentle as possible. She knew this was a struggle for him.

"Why don't you just consult with him. If you don't like what he has to say, we can think of other options," Principal Seamark suggested.

Will looked towards the wall, not wanting the man to see the tears streaming down his face. He took a few moments to think before nodding. "Okay," he whispered.

* * *

"Britt, Quinn is having a sleepover tonight, you coming?" Santana asked excitedly. She and the girls usually swapped houses every weekend and this time it was Quinn's turn. Santana watched her friend's usual upbeat smile turn into a frown. She wrapped her arm around her friend as they began to walk home from school. "What's wrong B?"

Brittany sighed. "I don't know I'm just really tired all the time now. I don't even know if I'll make it through one movie," she said, resting her head on Santana's shoulder as they slowly made their way home.

Santana nodded. "Yeah you almost fell out of your chair in Math class today," she smiled, remembering having to shake her friend awake. "Maybe it's that new medicine your taking," she said, knowing ever since Brittany started her medication a couple months ago things had been different.

Brittany nodded. "I guess. But mom said I have to take it to be normal so," she concluded, making Santana stop mid step.

"Britt you are normal without the pills. Don't let her tell you that," she said, her attitude as a child was much stronger as a teen.

Brittany shook her head. "The doctor said off the pills I'm like volcano waiting to explode. On them I'm like a calm summer breeze," she repeated with confusion. Maybe he compared her to something else but that sounded better.

"That's fucked up Britt," she commented.

Brittany's eyes widened. "Don't let your mom hear that. Last time I thought she was gonna drown you with the soap," she said with fearful eyes.

Santana shook her head. "Britt just come to Quinn's. You can snuggle with me if you get too sleepy," she said, not wanting to spend the weekend without her best friend.

Brittany smiled. "Okay."

* * *

**14 Years Old**

"Hey dad," Brittany greeted while walking into her father's school office. She usually stopped by every day after school before her dance rehearsals.

Will looked up from grading his papers. He smiled at the beautiful girl in front of him. "Hey baby. You ready for rehearsal?" he asked excitedly. They had finally found the one thing that would keep Brittany's focus. Music. She had joined a dance studio last year and surprised the heck out of everyone because she was a natural born talent.

Brittany sat in the chair across from his desk and lifted her feet on top of it. Will sent her a playful scolding look, smiling when she rested her feet back on the ground.

"I'm ready. Quinn and Santana were talking about trying out for the cheerleading squad," Brittany said, laughing at the scared look on her father's face.

"With Sue?" he asked wearily.

Brittany nodded excitedly. "Yeah tryouts are next week. We're gonna practice every day after dance," she told him.

Will sucked his lips into his mouth. "Are you sure you wouldn't rather join the Glee club sweetheart?" he asked, knowing Brittany loved to sing.

Brittany smiled thoughtfully before replying, "Santana said Glee Club is an abomination."

Will grimaced. "Of course she did. Well honey if you make it, I'll be at every game," he encouraged while leaning over his desk to kiss her forehead. He secretly hoped the girls wouldn't make it and he could convince them to join his club.

"Thanks dad. I better go. I wanna practice a little before Mike gets there," she said, knowing the Asian boy was her only competition. They had formed a friendship quickly the first day of class and Santana often teased her about when they would be getting married.

"Is Santana walking you to the studio?" he asked a little worried but tried not to show it. Even though she was on the medication for a couple of years (the lowest dose possible thanks to her father), she was still a little oblivious to her surroundings.

Brittany sighed while making her way to the door. "Her and Quinn are waiting in the cafeteria," she said. She hated that her parents treated her like a four year old. Her younger siblings had more freedom than her and she didn't understand why. Yes, she was easily distracted, but that didn't mean she couldn't function on her own.

Will nodded. "Have a good rehearsal B," he said sincerely, blowing her a kiss.

Brittany smiled and caught the kiss like she always did. "See you at home dad."

Will smiled proudly, staring after her for a while before going back to his papers.

* * *

"Pierce that girl of yours must be adopted," Sue Sylvester, the William McKinley cheerleading coach called to what she liked to call her nemesis William Pierce.

Rolling his eyes, Will turned from the chalk board where he was writing his lesson plan for the day. Sighing, he put the chalk on the ledge before walking towards Sue. "Is there a problem with Brittany Sue?" he asked, trying to be polite but knowing it would get him nowhere.

Sue raised her eyebrows. "Yeah she's extremely energetic and annoying and loud," she began, secretly loving the frustrated look on Will's face. "But she's good, real good," Sue informed, narrowing her eyes at the smile forming on his face.

"So she's doing good?" he asked, happy that Brittany was finding more and more things that held her attention.

"She has potential. But I will never admit that to her or anyone on my team. I have a strict negative reinforcement policy William and that is why I have a house full of trophies and your choir room is filled with posters of encouragement," she quipped.

Chuckling, Will shook his head. "It's always a pleasure Sue," he said.

* * *

Santana lounged against Brittany's bed with her knees up and an English book propped between. She watched her friend pace the room with frustration, clearly not understanding the homework they were assigned. Sighing, she closed the book and tossed it to the floor.

"Let's take a break Britt," she suggested, patting the space next to her for Brittany to lie down.

Brittany grabbed at her face while letting out a deep sigh. "Why am I the only one who doesn't get it?" she asked while falling to the bed. She rested her head on Santana's stomach and closed her eyes.

Santana smiled. "You're not the only one Britt. This shit is boring as hell anyways," she said, knowing her mother was nowhere in sight.

"I hate learning," she mumbled into Santana's stomach.

Santana didn't answer, knowing her friend had good days and bad when it came to school work. She raised her left hand and gently ran her fingers through Brittany's hair. She laughed to herself remembering when they were little and Brittany's hair would be a tangled mess because she wouldn't let anyone brush it without throwing a tantrum.

"Did Finn try and kiss you anymore after last Friday?" Brittany asked, waiting for the right moment to ask the question that's been on her mind all week. She closed her eyes, waiting for the answer.

Santana let out an aggravated sigh. "Yeah and Quinn went ape shit. I don't know why she's so set on him. He's not even a good kisser, he's so awkward about it," she complained, continuing to run her fingers against Brittany's scalp in a massaging motion.

Brittany smiled. "Well Matt Krockoski felt me up Saturday night," she laughed, knowing she would be the first of her friends to experience that.

Santana's eyes widened. "Like above the waist?" she asked, hoping Brittany didn't let him go too far.

Brittany nodded lazily. "Yeah, it felt like he was squeezing a dog toy," she described, making Santana burst out laughing.

"Eww Britt," she laughed, grabbing her chest as if she were protecting her own from that kind of torture.

"I think he was waiting for them to make a noise or something," she laughed, loving when she made Santana crack up.

Santana opened her mouth in disbelief, cackling at the thought. "What is wrong with him?" she asked, trying to calm her laughter.

The laughter soon died and they were left in a comfortable silence. Brittany turned her head so she was facing Santana. Both smiled at one another, lost in their own thoughts. Before Santana realized what was happening, she felt Brittany's lips pressed against her own. Her eyebrows scrunched in confusion, gently pulling away from her friend.

"Britt what the heck?" she asked softly, not understanding Brittany's actions.

Brittany pulled back nonchalantly. "I wanted to see if you were a good kisser," she said, shrugging innocently.

Santana licked around her lips, faintly tasting the strawberry lip smacker Brittany applied earlier. She stared at her friend, with squinted eyes, trying to figure out what had happened. "Am I?" she asked moments later, realizing Brittany would give her an honest opinion. She knew it was weird for girls to kiss, but she had seen late night television where two girls were kissing for guy's attention. Maybe that was Brittany's motive.

Brittany smiled. "Well I didn't really get to kiss you. It was just a peck," she said, licking around her own lips.

Santana narrowed her eyes. Would kissing Brittany ruin their friendship? Would things start to get weird? She did like the softness of Brittany's mouth pressed against her own. She didn't have rough chapped lips like Finn had had. With Brittany hovered over her, waiting for a response, she lifted her hands and pulled Brittany's face back towards her own. When she was inches from her lips she whispered, "Just to see if we're good kissers."

Brittany swallowed deeply, nodding her head. She closed her eyes and searched for her best friend's lips. The first touch was quick, like they were kissing a relative. Brittany breathed heavily through her nose, letting out a nervous breath. Their eyes locked for a few moments and Santana initiated the second kiss, pulling Brittany's face towards her own.

Their lips stayed together pulling apart briefly only to be placed back to one another. Santana's hands remained on Brittany's face, tensely holding onto it so she had somewhere to put her hands. Brittany's hands were holding her up over Santana and she was beginning to understand why Matt wanted to run his hands all over her body. She was starting to feel that way about Santana. When her tongue brushed against Santana's lip she was pushed away.

"I think that's good enough Britt," Santana said awkwardly, her face heating up from embarrassment. She didn't know why she was beginning to feel hot and flustered. It was just Brittany.

Brittany sat next to Santana, both their breath seemed heavy and deep.

"So?" Santana asked after they cooled down.

Brittany turned her head. "You're much better than Matt," she complemented, nodding her head up and down repeatedly. She was beginning to feel a surge of energy as if Santana recharged her battery.

Santana smiled. She had wanted to return the compliment, let Brittany know she was the best kiss had had ever had. But she couldn't. She shouldn't have felt that about her best friend, or any girl for that matter. It was strictly educational, practice for the real thing with guys.

"You were pretty good too Britt," she said, not wanting to make a big deal about it. "Listen I have to get home. Mom and Dad want a family dinner tonight," she rushed out, knowing whenever things got too serious she removed herself from the situation. She had never done it with Brittany; she was usually the one she went to when things got complicated. But Brittany was the cause of her confusion and she felt a need to escape.

Brittany nodded numbly, knowing something was up with her best friend. She slowly waved as Santana raced from her room. She couldn't help but replay Santana's opinion of her kissing skills over and over in her mind. "Pretty good," she whispered dejectedly.

* * *

"How was school?" Holly asked over dinner that night.

Brittany rested her head on her hand, slowly moving her food around her plate while her leg bounced up and down slightly shaking the table. She barely listened to her brother and sister's commentary of their day and when her father placed a hand on her arm, she jumped.

"You okay sweetheart?" he asked with concerned eyes. He looked across the table to his wife who displayed a similar expression. Brittany was never quiet at dinner, she usually dominated the conversation.

"Just tired," she said softly, not even bothering to look up from her plate.

"Maybe if you weren't up all night wandering around the house you'd be normal," Tommy, her twelve year old brother teased.

Brittany winced. She hated being referred to as abnormal.

"Tommy shut your mouth," Will yelled, sending his son a glare.

"Clear your plate Tommy," Holly continued, knowing her son touched on one of Brittany's insecurities. She shook her head at him as he passed by with his plate. "You were fine before honey. Did you and Santana have a fight?" she asked, hoping to get her daughter to open up.

Brittany shook her head. "I'm just tired. I had a lot of homework tonight," she said, knowing that was only part of the reason she was upset.

"Do you need me to help you?" her father asked. Aside from Santana, he was the only one who had patience when it came to getting Brittany to understand something.

"No I'm almost done. Santana helped," she answered, knowing she had no clue on how to do her homework. She figured she could come up with some elaborate reason as to why she didn't have it.

Will nodded, before going back to his meal. "Well you better go to sleep early tonight," he said gently, not wanting her to get worn out. "And if cheerios is too much to handle with school maybe you should reconsider," he added, knowing Sue was probably killing her with practice.

The mention of quitting gained Brittany's attention. She shook her head harshly. "I'm fine dad," she argued, dropping her fork to her plate.

"Baby your dad's just looking out for you. We don't want you to fall behind on your school work that's all," Holly tried, not wanting Brittany to think they didn't believe in her.

"How can I be behind if I was never ahead to begin with," she yelled, surprising both herself and her parents. She rarely was in a fowl mood and she never argued with or talked back to her parents. That was Santana's role. But the pressure from everything that had been going on was starting to get to her, not to mention that things were now weird with her best friend and she couldn't help but have an outburst.

Will's eyes widened at the comment. "Britt," he scolded more shocked than angered.

"Have you been taking your medicine Britt?" her mother asked out of concern.

Brittany looked back and forth between her parents before abruptly getting up. She made what could be described as a squeal before running to the steps. Both parents looked at one another, wincing when they heard her bedroom door slam close.

* * *

"You're awfully quiet this evening," Hugo said after a mouthful of mashed potatoes. He and his wife had talked about their days waiting for Santana to interrupt but she just sat quietly looking as if she were in another world.

Santana looked up from her plate. "Just tired," she mumbled before focusing back on her mountain of peas and carrots.

"That Sue Sylvester is gonna kill you girls," Maribel commented, knowing how hard her daughter was being worked by the ego driven coach.

Santana shook her head. "Practices are fine," she said.

"Did you and Britt have a fight or something?" she asked gently, knowing how quiet Santana would get if she and Brittany had a disagreement.

Santana's eyes bugged at the mention of her blonde friend. She forcefully shook her head, avoiding any eye contact with her parents.

"Things with Britt are fine. I'm just tired. Am I not allowed to be tired?" she argued, waiting for one of her parents to comment on her attitude, but they didn't.

"Someone came in with their shirt stapled to their arm this morning," Hugo laughed, quickly changing the subject before Santana threw them all for a loop.

Santana stared at her plate, faintly listening to her parents laugh about the incidents of the day.

* * *

On her way home from dance rehearsal the next day, she was surprised to see Santana waiting for her on her porch. They had avoided one another at school and Quinn had said Santana was held back for something when she walked her to the dance studio.

Santana smiled softly to her friend, gesturing with her eyes for Brittany to take a seat. "Hey," she whispered.

Brittany threw her backpack onto the porch before taking a seat. "Hey," she answered back in the same tone.

Both stared awkwardly at one another before belting out apologizes.

"I'm sorry I ran out yesterday," Santana said, over Brittany's "I'm sorry I kissed you."

Santana smiled. "I just," she started, "I never imagined us doing that you know," she admitted, hoping she didn't sound like a fool.

Brittany returned the smile. "Because we're best friends?" she asked.

Santana narrowed her eyes. "Because we're girls Britt," she answered, biting her lip at the pained expression on Brittany's face.

"I don't understand," Brittany said.

"Girls don't kiss other girls like that Britt," she tried, knowing Brittany got confused sometimes about what was right and wrong.

"Sure they do. A kiss is a gesture of love. If you love someone you kiss them," she explained, nodding her head at her explanation.

"Okay but we can't love each other like that. We like boys so boys are the ones we should be kissing," Santana said slowly so Brittany understood every word she said.

Brittany smiled. "But I like boys and girls so," she said leaving an open ended answer. She knew who to kiss and who not too. She would never kiss Eric Hanover, the computer geek in second period that picked his nose or Anna Jenkins who smelled like a house of gym socks. She only kissed people she was attracted to.

Santana's eyes widened at Brittany's confession. "Britt you don't tell people that right?" she asked, looking around as if someone were spying on them.

Now Brittany's eyes narrowed in confusion. "It's not a big deal Santana," she said, wondering why her friend was acting even weirder than the day before.

Santana held her hand up. "Just promise me you won't say that out loud to anyone. I mean do what you want with who, but don't advertize it Britt. We're on our way to being top of the food chain and something like that can destroy us," she said, her tone harsh and demanding, something she rarely used with Brittany.

Brittany seemed taken aback. She didn't understand what the big deal was. It wasn't like she hid it before. She and Santana often talked about what celebrities had the best bodies and were hot. Whatever Santana's issue was was obviously deeper than her, but she wouldn't push to find out. Pushing Santana to do something she didn't want always ended badly.

"Whatever San," she answered before getting up from her spot. "You wanna go over the routine?" she asked, wanting things to go back to normal between them.

Santana smiled. "Why don't we watch a movie or something. I think you've had enough exercise for the day Britt," she said, gently bopping her nose with her finger before heading inside.

Brittany smiled after her. She was definitely smarter than Santana when it came to love.


	2. Chapter One

**16 Years Old**

"You've got to be kidding me. Britt we're finally the most popular girls in school and you want us to join Glee Club? Are you out of your mind?" Santana yelled, startling the students around her with her boastful tone.

Brittany smiled shyly to the faces around her before concentrating on her friend. "My dad needs twelve people to compete and he only has ten. If you and me join they could really go far in the competition San. I've heard you sing, you're like way better than Rachel Berry," she encouraged.

"Look he may have got blubber boy, preggers, and Puck, but come on Britt. Do you really want a customary Slushy facial that comes with being in that club?" she asked, glaring at the students who walked by trying to listen to their conversation.

Brittany sighed. "Maybe it's time we stop caring about what people think," she argued with more than one meaning.

Santana realized her double statement and shook her head. "What we do does not need to be public knowledge," she whispered firmly.

"Look I never ask you for anything. And my dad really needs us. Can you please just join with me? It won't be the same without you," she whined.

Santana raised her eyebrows. "So you're joining no matter what? Even if I don't?" she asked.

Brittany tried nodding confidently, trying to put her foot down once and for all.

Santana bit her lip in contemplation, watching the eyes she knew so well in front of her. After the hallway cleared out, her expression softened. Brittany always did things for her, even if she didn't want to.

"Alright I'll join," she said, smiling at the look of excitement on Brittany's face. "But you better tell your dad he better not reveal any embarrassing things of my past," she added, knowing Mr. Pierce liked to reminisce.

"Deal," Brittany squealed, jumping in for a hug.

Santana accepted the embrace, feeling something more than friendship. She found herself longing for Brittany's touch, whether it be a simple hug or full on make out session in one of their rooms. The past year had been confusing for her and she didn't like the feelings that were building up inside of her.

"Come on San, let's go tell dad," she said, grabbing Santana's hand.

* * *

"Britt did you really make out with Bobby McAlister in the janitor's closet?" Santana asked one night over the phone from her bed. She hadn't seen Brittany since school because she was busy with dance rehearsal and both couldn't go an hour without being around one another.

Brittany laughed. "You're the only one I've made out with in the janitor's closet San," she reminded, not understanding Santana's interest in her hookups. Santana made it perfectly clear that they were not an item. They were just best friends with benefits.

Santana sighed with what seemed like relief. "Well why don't you correct people when they start spreading that shit around school?" she asked.

"I don't care what people think about me. I know me and the people that are important know me so what's to say?" she answered, knowing her dad never believed any of that stuff when it spread. He knew she spent her time at practice, rehearsal, glee and with Santana.

Santana shook her head. "Sometimes I wish I was like you Britt," she said.

Brittany laughed. "Only sometimes?" she joked.

"How was rehearsal?" Santana asked, wanting to get off the subject of hookups.

"Tiring. My recitals coming up so my instructor is really letting us have it. You're gonna come right?" she asked hopefully.

"Of course B," Santana answered.

Brittany smiled.

They laid in a comfortable silence, comforted by the fact that they were connected in some way.

"You're not falling asleep on me are you Britt?" Santana teased, knowing Brittany would be up looking for lost things she only seems to remember are missing in the middle of the night. When they have sleepovers Santana physically holds onto Brittany until she falls asleep so she doesn't get out of bed.

"Do you ever wish things were different sometimes?" Brittany asked, ignoring Santana's comment.

Santana stared at the ceiling in confusion. "Like what?" she asked curiously.

Brittany sighed. "Like I was just like every other kid who didn't need medicine to control how they act. Like you and me kissing were just as okay as a boy and a girl kissing. Like I was already born with all the knowledge I would need so I didn't have to struggle in school," she said, her voice cracking at the end.

Santana's eyes widened. Brittany rarely got serious about things and she could tell by her voice things were getting to be too much for the girl. She sat up, resting her back against the wall. "Britt I love who you are. I love when you get so excited about something that you just have to burst out how you're feeling. Or when you learn something it really sticks and it's all you talk about for days. And I love that you're so comfortable with who you are," she said, the last part softer than the rest.

Brittany smiled at the endearment. "Thanks," she whispered bashfully.

"Get some sleep B," she said affectionately

"You too San," Brittany returned.

"Night Britt."

"Night San,"

And a whisper of I love you was left unheard on both sides.

**TBC **


	3. Chapter Two

**Age 16 Continued**

"Miss Lopez, can you explain to me why Mr. Karofsky is on his way to the emergency room?" Mr. Figgins, the high school principal asked from behind his desk. He had been rudely interrupted from his afternoon nap when a riot broke out in the hallway started by one Miss Santana Lopez.

Santana crossed her arms over her chest, shaking her head in a stubborn motion. Mr. Pierce sat beside her, his arm around the back of her chair. This wasn't the first time he had been called in to monitor his daughter's best friend. She was like a ticking time bomb.

"Santana," Mr. Pierce urged, gesturing with his eyes for her to take it seriously. She was like a daughter to him and treated her as he would his own. He knew Hugo had a lot on his mind with work and Mrs. Lopez spent her time spoiling Santana instead of disciplining her. In a way, Will and Holly were stricter on her than her own parents.

Santana rolled her eyes, licking her lips as she nodded at Will's request. "He's been harassing my boy Kurt and it was time for him to feel physically what he's been doing to Kurt emotionally," she said trying to sound tough but couldn't help let out the turmoil she was feeling herself.

Will squeezed her shoulder to comfort her. He didn't care for David Karofsky himself and secretly was quite proud of what she had done.

"Needless to say, I now have a student with what I can only describe as severely swollen testicles lying in Lima Memorial. This act of violence is not permitted on school grounds and you need to be punished," he informed through a thick accent.

Santana held her hand up at his statement. "Did you not just hear what I said?" she sassed.

"Santana," Will warned, knowing the girl could get pretty feisty.

"No. Mr. Pierce does he even hear himself? I just told you I was defending a friend. A friend that's been verbally and physically assaulted by Karofsky. The Glee club has a slushy thrown at them every other day. Where are the punishments for that?" she yelled from the edge of her seat.

Mr. Figgins shook his head. "Slushy's are not on the board approved ban of violence. And Kurt has never come to me or been witnessed being harassed by David," he answered in a matter of fact tone.

"Doesn't mean it didn't happen," she retorted.

"Principal Figgins, I," Will began but was stopped by Figgins hand.

"No discussions. One week suspension and if I catch you doing anything again I will enforce expulsion," he argued, slamming his hand down on the desk as if he were a judge.

Santana's eyes widened. "You've got to be shi…" she started.

"Santana," Will yelled in disbelief.

* * *

"Brittany stay behind, I need to speak with you," Mrs. Nelson, her English teacher said at the end of class.

Brittany had been distracted the whole period since Santana had been called down to the principal's office and she couldn't help but fidget at her desk. Sighing, she nodded and packed up her belongings before going to the front of the class. She waited as patiently as she could, watching her teacher go through her grade book.

"You're failing," she finally spoke, looking up from the book to deliver the news.

Brittany's eyes widened. "I am?" she asked.

The teacher nodded, rising from her desk. "You haven't handed in a homework assignment yet Brittany. You don't pay attention, you don't take notes, and you don't participate in class. I'm going to need to have a word with your father," she said regrettably.

Brittany shook her head. "Please no, he's got a lot on his mind right now. I don't want to bother him with this. Is there anything I can do to raise my grade?" she pleaded, her soft blue eyes beginning to tear.

Mrs. Nelson stared at the girl with sympathetic eyes. She knew the girl had ADHD and from what William Pierce informed the school, it was under control without the help of the school. It was very clear that the Pierce's didn't want their daughter classified and put in special needs classes. She did Will a favor by letting Brittany into her class, but she couldn't watch over her every move, she had too many students. Sighing, she nodded.

"I want you to read a book, your choice. I want you to write descriptions of each important character, a summary of what the story is about, and pick a character you connect with and tell me why," she explained while writing it down on a piece of paper.

Brittany nodded. "I can do that," she said confidently.

Mrs. Nelson smiled.

* * *

"Alright guys I have some bad news," Will said that afternoon at Glee practice. He watched eleven sets of eyes focus on him.

"Mr. Pierce please tell me you're not letting Jacob Ben Israel join?" Rachel shouted in distraught, earning a group of eye rolls from her fellow students.

Will narrowed his eyes in a similar way Brittany did when she was confused. "No Rachel," he said, but was once again interrupted.

"I will not confirm or deny how the teacher's lounge is missing candy from the vending machine," Puck admitted, earning him odd looks from everyone including Mr. Pierce.

"Guys focus. Santana was suspended for a week so we're gonna have to work around her solos," he informed, surprised at the complacent look on some of their faces.

"That's my girl," Puck cheered, making Brittany glare in his direction. Santana was not his girl.

"Coach Sylvester is gonna flip shit," Quinn whispered to Brittany.

Brittany swallowed hard, not believing that Santana actually had gotten suspended. She was just trying to help Kurt. Brittany looked back towards Kurt and saw the guilty look spread across his face. Sighing, he took out his phone and began texting someone. Brittany hoped it was Santana.

Throughout practice Brittany tried to keep focus on what they were doing, but half way through, she stopped singing and started free styling across the room. Will noticed his daughter struggling throughout the rehearsal and chose not to acknowledge it until everyone left. The rest of the group eyed the girl but continued on with what they were doing because they were used to her behavior.

"Alright guys good work. I'll see you all tomorrow," Will encouraged, patting the backs of the students walking by him as they made their way out of the choir room. He collected his papers and placed them in his briefcase before turning towards his daughter who was now seated at the piano with her head in her hands.

"Everything okay sweetheart?" he asked carefully while planting a gentle hand on her back.

Brittany lifted her head from her hands and nodded her head.

"Did you do okay in class today?" he asked, knowing she sometimes got frustrated and that would cause her to behave like she was in rehearsal.

Brittany stared at her dad with worried eyes. She hoped Mrs. Nelson didn't tell him about her failing. "Classes were good," she said quickly, not wanting him to question her further.

Will watched her for a few moments then smiled. "Alright Britt let's get home. Mom's got dinner waiting," he said, wrapping his arm around her as they made their way out to the car.

* * *

Santana stared at her bedroom ceiling, her eyes opening and shutting as she began to fall asleep. Her parents made it very clear that they were not happy with her suspension and she was sent to her room for the remainder of the night. She contemplated sneaking over to Brittany's but she knew if Will had caught her, she'd be in even more trouble. Sighing, she turned her head to her night table. It was only seven o'clock. While reaching for her TV remote, her plans to watch trashy reality TV were interrupted by her cell phone ringing. She smiled at the picture Brittany put of herself when she was calling.

"What's up B?" she answered.

Brittany sighed on the other end. "I'm trying to read, but I can't focus. It's like all the words start moving on the page and jumble together," she said frustrated. She had spent the better part of the evening trying to get through chapter one.

Santana frowned, getting up to peer through her window into Brittany's bedroom. She saw her friend pacing the room with a book in her hands. "Reading for what?" she asked, knowing Brittany wasn't doing it for pleasure. The girl could barely read a title of a book before getting bored.

"English. Mrs. Nelson told me I'm failing," she admitted sadly. She met Santana's eyes across the room and held the book up to prove her point.

"What? Britt how are you failing?" she asked with widened eyes.

"I don't know. I haven't really handed anything in. She's letting me make it up though. But I have to read a book and write about it. I just can't concentrate," she complained and threw the book across the room.

Santana contemplated Brittany's problem. She looked around her room, her eyes landing on her book shelf. Smiling, she scanned the shelf, looking for something Brittany would be in to. Settling on the Hunger Games, she took the book back to her bed.

"I got an idea," she said triumphantly, and two the spent the remainder of the night with Santana reading Brittany the Hunger Games over the phone. She stopped every couple pages to look out the window and make sure Brittany was paying attention, and by midnight the only sounds heard was Brittany's soft breathing on the other side. She felt accomplished that she was able to help Brittany with her homework and get her to go to sleep at a reasonable hour. She ended the call and placed the book on her night table before moving under the covers.

* * *

Will looked up from the morning paper when Brittany entered the kitchen the next morning. He immediately noticed she looked almost refreshed which was rare so early in the morning. She never really got a full night's sleep and eventually it caught up to her making her someone the family didn't mess with because she could be unbearably grouchy. But today, today she had a certain glow about her.

"Morning dad," she said cheerfully as she opened the refrigerator to get out the orange juice.

"Morning Britt. Did you sleep well?" he asked, watching her dance around the kitchen as she made her breakfast.

"I think so. I don't even remember falling asleep. Santana was reading to me over the phone and the next time I looked at the clock it was morning," she replied with a certain energy coffee could only bring.

Will narrowed his eyes. "Why was Santana reading to you over the phone?" he asked. That didn't seem like something the two would do. If anything, they would have snuck into one another's room to hangout.

Brittany's eyes widened. She couldn't tell her dad that she wasn't doing well in school, he would be so disappointed. Tapping her foot against the tiled floor, she quickly tried to think of a believable answer.

"She read somewhere that reading to kids with ADHD helps them calm down," she lied, not knowing if the fact was even relevant.

Will nodded confused. "I see," he said before adding, "Well I guess it worked huh," he laughed, gesturing to the ball of energy in front of him.

Brittany nodded exaggeratedly . "Best night of sleep I ever had," she agreed.

Will smiled before going back to his paper.

* * *

"What do you mean she was suspended?" Coach Sylvester yelled during Cheerios practice that afternoon. She had been in the middle of roll call when she discovered a certain Latina missing from the group.

Brittany bit her lip, not being good with confrontation. She began to shift from foot to foot rocking her head along to a soundless beat. Quinn noticed her struggle and stepped in.

"She sent a kid to the hospital yesterday," she answered, trying to seem intimidating to the other girls. "She'll be back in a week," she finished smugly.

Sue shook her head in disgust. "That little tan rat Figgins. How dare he suspend one of my Cheerios," she yelled, outraged at the fact that Principal Figgins did something behind her back. She could care less what Santana did, as long as it didn't involve messing with the cheerleading squad.

"Don't worry coach, me and Britt will keep her up to speed on the routines," Quinn assured her, making the rest of the squad roll their eyes at her kiss ass attitude.

Coach Sylvester nodded and turned towards Brittany's fidgeting form. She narrowed her eyes, entranced for a moment before shaking her thought. "Pierce take the incompetent group and whip them into shape. Q take the rest and go through the routine," she said dismissively.

Brittany looked towards Quinn with a confused expression. Quinn nodded comfortingly before turning to the squad.

"The people that suck go with Brittany," she yelled, winking at Brittany to let her know she has her back.

Smiling, Brittany politely led her group to the far side of the gym. She didn't have it in her to be mean, usually this was Santana's job.

* * *

"I can't believe my parents let you in. They swore I was bound to this room all week," Santana laughed while Brittany took a seat on her unmade bed.

She had been bored to tears, basically twiddling her thumbs when Brittany burst through her bedroom door. Brittany shrugged innocently, not understanding what the big deal was. Santana's parents usually didn't follow through on their punishments anyway.

"They said only five minutes, but they'll probably forget I'm here," Brittany said, her eyes drifting around Santana's messy room. She wasn't good with clutter, it made her lose focus.

Santana noticed her friend's fidgety demeanor and pulled her under her arms further up the bed so she was sitting next to her. Brittany's eyes widened from the movement.

"So what did I miss today? Any good gossip?" Santana asked while running her fingers through Brittany's hair to calm the girl.

Brittany took a moment to think, but all she could focus on was the clothes thrown all over Santana's room. She began to wonder if she had seen every article of clothing Santana had ever had. The empty dishes on her desk made her think about what Santana had been eating the past couple days while she was not around. Her body slowly began to rock back and forth on the bed as she contemplated each question running through her mind.

Santana narrowed her eyes, waiting for a response but soon realized Brittany was in her own world. Sighing, she grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her so she was lying against her chest. Brittany was shook from her thoughts and tilted her head up towards Santana.

"Can we make out now?" she asked innocently, knowing when she and Santana kissed the jumbled thoughts went away and she felt a calm peacefulness throughout her body.

Santana smiled softly while running the back of her hand up Brittany's cheek. Brittany rose from her position, turning so the top half of her body was pressed gently over Santana's. Both girls waited to see who would make the first move and eventually Santana pulled Brittany's face towards her own.

Sometimes they kissed in a fury passion, not even discussing it before ripping one another's clothes off and pleasuring one another's bodies in a way only they knew how. Sometimes Santana initiated it after a stressful day of Puck feeling her up in the hallways at school or her catching herself checking out the other girls in the locker room. Sometimes Brittany would have a great day where she was completely focused and knew everything that was going on around her and she would want to reward herself with only the feelings she got from being with Santana. And then there were times like now, where it seemed as if they've been in love for years and were expressing that love in a gentle timeless way where insecurities and doubts were nowhere in sight.

After moments of soft sensual pecks, both girls met one another's eyes and saw a similar want. Santana lifted herself up, her hands out gently pushing Brittany on her backside. She knelt over her and began stripping her top, leaving her bare chest in front of her best friend. Brittany pulled her down; running her hands up and down Santana's naked back as they pressed their lips together. Heavy breathing could soon be heard and the sound of their heartbeats matched with a rapid beat.

"Yours too," Santana whispered breathlessly, her hands sliding up Brittany's shirt, tickling around her stomach with her fingers.

Brittany swallowed heavily before lifting her arms so Santana could remove it. Breast to Breast both fought to keep their sighs of pleasure to a minimum. Brittany's head rested stiffly against the pillow as Santana ran her tongue over the top half of her body, stopping to lightly bite or suck on certain hot spots she's learned of over the year. Santana smiled as Brittany's fingers ran roughly through her hair, knowing the girl never received pleasure from anyone like she did with her. When she reached lace sticking out from Brittany's jeans, she locked eyes with Brittany before tugging it up with her teeth making her moan out loud.

"Shhh," Santana laughed as she unbuttoned her jeans before swiftly pulling them off and throwing them with the rest of the mess on the floor. Her mouth started to water as she stared at Brittany lying in only her lacey panties. Biting her lip, she grabbed onto Brittany's waist and began peppering her body with kisses, starting at her neck and working her way down to the top of her underwear.

Brittany's body tensed, slightly lifting from the bed as Santana ran her fingers across her stomach. She never felt this anxious with any of the guys she slept with. They didn't even do foreplay; they stripped her and fucked her, nothing more, nothing less.

When nothing was left and Santana had felt she teased enough, she buried her head between Brittany's legs, running her tongue in the final spot she had neglected to pleasure. Brittany's mind clouded with the best feeling in the world until it eventually went blank and left her panting on Santana's bed. Santana smiled and covered her friend with her blankets, knowing Brittany was on a high at that moment. She got up and locked her door, knowing the worst thing possible would be her parents finding them naked on her bed. She quickly changed into a pair of pajamas and grabbed the Hunger Games from her desk. When she got under the covers, Brittany automatically snuggled her naked form to Santana, lying her head on her chest.

"I can return the favor San," she whispered sleepily, her eyes opening and closing as she spoke

Santana laughed quietly. "Later Britt," she whispered before adding, "Let's work on getting some more of this book read," she said while getting comfortable.

The two spent the remainder of the night snuggled together reading the Hunger Games and before she left for the night, Brittany stayed true to her word.

TBC


	4. Chapter Three

**Thank you for the reviews, favorites, and follows. I very much appreciate it and hope you enjoy this next chapter. Sorry for the delay on my other stories but I have a bit of writers block with them. I will update though :)**

* * *

**Age 16 Continued **

Santana walked through the McKinley hallways with her head held high on her return to school . She evilly smirked as certain students cleared a path for her or avoided eye contact. Obviously word traveled fast about her encounter with Karofsky. Just before she reached her locker, a gentle hand cupped her shoulder. She immediately put her bitch glare on and turned to the intruder.

"Santana we need to have a word," Mr. Pierce said while guiding her in the direction of his office.

Her look was replaced with confusion, not understanding why Brittany's dad needed to speak with her at school. He could have talked to her this morning when she and Brittany had left for school. Sighing, she followed him into his office and lazily took a seat in one of the cushioned chairs, resting her feet on top of his desk.

Will shot a similar look he did with Brittany about feet on his desk, only Santana didn't seem to be intimidated or care at all. He pushed her feet from the desk and took a seat on top of it inwardly smiling at the annoyed look on her face.

"Mr. P what is this about? I'm gonna miss class," she said, not really caring about the class part.

Will sighed. "Look Santana, Holly and me are a little concerned about Britt. She's been real closed off lately and she's having a hard time focusing again. Has she been taking her medicine?" he asked, hoping she would have some information on his daughter.

Santana narrowed her eyes in mystification. "I don't know. Shouldn't you ask her that?" she retorted, not liking anyone ganging up on Brittany.

"You know how she gets when she thinks we're not treating her like an adult. I'm just really starting to get worried. She barely slept all week, ever since she visited you that night," he informed, wondering if the two had gotten into an argument.

Santana took in the information, thinking about the night Brittany had left her house. Everything had been good, they read the Hunger Games and then Brittany returned the favor as she liked to call it_. 'She did look a little down when she was leaving,' _Santana thought. But she's been fine with her on the phone ever since. _'This morning she was a little off too,'_ she remembered.

"We didn't get into a fight or anything. I think she's just stressed with school work," she explained, not wanting to tell him she was failing, but wanting to give him some kind of heads up.

Will bit his lip in contemplation. "I've spoken to her teachers. She seems to being doing okay," he believed. "Do you think it could be about a boy? Has she been seeing anyone?" he asked, desperate to figure out what's wrong.

Santana's eyes enlarged at the question. Was his daughter seeing someone? Lately Brittany's been seeing a bunch of someone's and gender didn't matter. Not to mention she spent most of her nights with Santana not doing homework in one of their bedrooms.

"Nah Mr. Pierce, she's not serious with anyone," she answered, hoping he would get off the subject.

Will nodded. "Well if she says anything to you, could you let me know? I mean I don't want her to have a meltdown like a couple years ago," he admitted while trying to shake his memories.

Santana nodded numbly. She had never seen anything so scary in her life as a couple years ago. Brittany's energy level peaked so high she had to be hospitalized to keep her under control. It started because she was stressed about her dance recital and soon took off to a whole other level.

"Thanks San," Will said softly well writing out a late pass.

Santana accepted the pass and went to leave, but stopped herself. "Mr. P," she asked almost innocently.

Will looked up, giving her his attention.

"You don't have to worry about Britt, I got her back," she offered, hoping the sediment would ease his nerves. She knew he constantly worried about Brittany and as much as she gave him attitude, she cared about him.

Will smiled tearfully, holding his hand to his heart in gratitude.

* * *

Brittany turned her head to the side, trying to enjoy what Matt Edwards was doing to her neck, but she couldn't. She didn't understand why nothing felt as good as it did when she and Santana did stuff. She tried with other girls and much like now, she was left unsatisfied. She and Santana were at one of Puck's parties. His mom went away at least once a month and he usually threw award winning parties. Brittany didn't even want to go because she had been so tired lately, but Santana had begged her. She didn't understand why because Santana pretty much ditched her as soon as they entered the party.

"You wanna do it?" he whispered what he thought was sexily in her ear.

They had somehow made it into Puck's little sister's room and Brittany had spent the majority of the make out session looking at the cartoon figures on her wallpaper. She had been anything but turned on. Brittany wiped the wet patch he left on her neck before meeting his eyes.

"What?" she asked, not have been paying attention to what he had said. She only knew he was waiting for an answer.

Smiling, he reached his hand under her skirt to show her what he had said. Brittany swallowed hard, not prepared for the intrusion. She continued to stare at the wall while he explored below her panties, wincing every time his inexperienced fingers went awkwardly. She tried to just let it happen like she had so many times before, but she couldn't even pretend.

"Let's go back downstairs," she said while pushing against his chest.

Matt frowned as he removed his hand from her underwear. "You've done it with everyone else," he snarled, not believing she was refusing him.

Brittany winced. She had a reputation for sleeping with half the school, but it wasn't true. Yes she did sleep with a lot of people, but after a while of rumors spreading around, guys just started saying they slept with her to get a reputation and unfortunately was believed.

"Look I'm not in the mood," she said more roughly, trying to sit up but was pushed back down.

"Come on Brittany. Why would you come in this room with me? What did you think was gonna happen? Don't leave me hanging here, please," he begged in almost a childlike fashion.

Brittany tried to calm her racing thoughts. She didn't even know they were upstairs until they hit the bed. She had had a few drinks and her medication wasn't cooperating with the alcohol. Sighing, she realized she was too tired to even move.

"Just be fast," she said quietly, turning her head back towards the wallpaper while he manipulated her body.

* * *

"Where's Britt?" Santana asked while sitting next to Quinn on the family room couch. Puck had been bothering her since she got there and she had lost Brittany along the way. She finally gave into Puck's pleads just to shut him up. She rarely got off with him and when she did she was fantasizing about Brittany.

Quinn looked around the room for their friend but was in quiet a drunken haze to spot her. "Not sure," she answered, leaning her head on Finn's chest. Finn rubbed his hand up and down her back while handing her a bottle of water to sip.

"She was with Matt Edwards before. Saw them go upstairs," Finn, in his sober mind answered for his girlfriend. He figured it was okay to let her go because that was what she usually did at every party, especially when Santana was off with Puck.

Santana rolled her eyes. "Of course she did," she mumbled, not understanding how Brittany could hook up with someone no matter where they went. Sighing, she saw Puck hanging on some girl in the corner. She didn't care, but she had to keep up appearances so she took off hell bent in their direction.

"Off my man bitch," she yelled aggressively.

* * *

Brittany sat lifelessly in the backseat of Finn's car. She had taken it upon herself to hideout there until her friends were ready to leave. After Matt had thanked her and left, she spent an hour in the bathroom trying to look at herself in the mirror. Every time a person passed the car she tensed, and when the doors finally opened, she was thankful it was time to leave.

"Britt we've been looking everywhere for you," Santana yelled, pushing Brittany over so she could get in. She disregarded her slow movement, and continued to release her annoyance on the subject. "What the hell were you thinking, why didn't you answer your phone?" she continued disbelievingly.

Finn helped Quinn into the passenger's seat before getting in and starting the car. He looked back to Brittany and saw the spaced out look on her face.

"You okay Britt?" he asked, knowing even for her she didn't look right.

"I feel sick," Quinn whined from her seat, too drunk to even notice Brittany.

Brittany felt like their voices were miles away as she stared back and forth between the two. Santana sighed loudly and slammed her door closed.

"Just drive Finn," she answered for Brittany while continuing to stare her down. After she took a moment to calm down, she studied Brittany's disheveled form. Her annoyance soon turned to worry and she leaned in close to her friend so the others wouldn't hear. "Are you okay?" she whispered worriedly.

Brittany nodded and rested her head against the window, relishing in the coolness the glass gave off. She closed her eyes and when Santana's hand grabbed her own she almost felt better. The car ride was silent and when Finn pulled up between their houses, Santana pulled Brittany towards her house, not even giving her the choice as to where she wanted to go.

* * *

They both took turns showering and Santana sent a text to Holly that Brittany was spending the night at her house. They told their parents they were hanging out at Quinn's and would text where they were staying for the night. When Santana got into bed next to Brittany and tried to lay on her chest to cuddle, she was surprised to see Brittany turn away. Leaned on her arm, she stared at the back of Brittany's head for what seemed like hours before placing her hand on her shoulder. It immediately stiffened so she retracted.

"Are you mad B?" she asked, moving in closer to Brittany's body. She wanted to comfort her the only way she knew how, but Brittany wasn't having it.

Brittany closed her eyes tightly, silently begging herself to fall asleep so she didn't have to deal with the night any longer, but Santana kept trying to get her to talk. Her mind repeated the night over and over and she wished she could go about her normal nightly ritual looking for lost socks or making lists for the week that she never followed or practicing her dance routines for Lord Tubbington. But her mind wouldn't shut off. She felt sick to her stomach and her legs felt like they were shaking even though she was purposefully keeping them still.

"Britt you making me worry. What's going on?" she asked again, this time forcing Brittany's body to lay flat so she could see her face. Her eyes widened at the tense look on Brittany's face, as if she were waiting to be punched or hurt.

Brittany took a deep breath before opening her eyes. She saw the concern on Santana's face and inwardly felt happy that she even cared. Her eyes began to glaze over and before she fell asleep she faintly whispered "It was too hard."

* * *

Santana spent most of the night watching Brittany sleep, wondering what she had meant before she fell asleep. What was too hard? She was afraid to touch her for fear of waking her, but she couldn't help but still Brittany's fidgeting legs that repeatedly kicked her throughout the night. When four AM came, exhaustion took over and she too fell asleep. The next time she opened her eyes, the bed was half empty with no note or picture like Brittany usually left when leaving before she woke up. Sighing, she quickly pulled on sweats and through her hair into a ponytail before going downstairs.

"Morning baby girl," Hugo greeted cheerfully as she made her way into the kitchen. Sundays were his day off and it was when he was in the best moods. Perfect moods for getting something she's been wanting.

"Morning," Santana replied with a half smile before adding, "Did you see Britt?" she asked and grabbed a muffin from the basket her mother left on the island counter.

Hugo frowned. "No I haven't. She must have snuck by; I've been up for a while. It's those dancer legs you know," he laughed while gesturing with his hands for her to hand him a muffin.

Santana tried to smile, but could only manage a smirk as she tossed a Blueberry Muffin her father's way. Something was up with Brittany and she needed to find out what. After finishing her muffin, she raced upstairs to her room to peer into Brittany's room.

"What the heck," she mumbled, noticing the shades were drawn. She and Brittany never covered their windows during the day unless they were together. Sighing, she grabbed her phone from the nightstand. After six rings, Brittany finally picked up.

"Hello?" she mumbled tiredly.

Santana frowned. "Britt what the heck, why did you leave so early?" she asked while making her way back downstairs.

"I don't feel well," Brittany replied miserably.

Santana continued out the front door. "I'm on my way over," she said and hung up before Brittany could tell her no.

* * *

"Morning San," Holly greeted from the entry way of the Pierce home. She had just come down the stairs with dirty laundry as Santana walked in.

"Morning. Where's Britt? She said she was sick?" she asked while dodging Brittany's brother and sister who came trampling down the stairs.

"Guys stop chasing each other," she yelled then added, "I thought Brittany stayed with you last night?" Holly answered confusingly while placing the laundry basket on the floor. She looked up towards the ceiling. "Britt," she called.

"I just talked to her. She must have come home in the middle of the night. She said she doesn't feel well," Santana explained while walking towards the staircase.

"I was just in her room. She wasn't there," Holly said wearily, wondering what her oldest was up to. She followed Santana to the staircase and quickly ran up to Brittany's closed bedroom door. Santana peered over Holly's tall shoulder, trying to get a glimpse inside her room, but once they walked inside, Brittany was nowhere to be found.

"Britt?" Holly called again, hoping Brittany wasn't under her bed or in the closet.

Santana pulled her phone out and sent a text to Brittany.

SANTANA: Britt where are you?

"I didn't hear her come in last night. I mean I'm used to noise around the house at night, but I would have heard the alarm beep if she came in," Holly explained, still confused as to what was going on.

Moments later Santana got a response.

BRITTANY: In your bathroom. Too sick to move.

Santana read the reply and winced. What was she supposed to tell Holly? She surely couldn't inform Brittany's mother that they had been out drinking all night_. 'Why didn't I check the bathroom?'_ she thought while looking back and forth between her phone and Holly.

"Did she answer?" Holly asked.

Santana nodded. "She's in my bathroom. That was stupid, I didn't even think to look. She must have had too much sugar last night. We kind of went on a binge," she lied, hoping Brittany's mom would believe her.

Holly nodded. "That's because the two of you normally eat like rabbits because of that Sue Sylvester. You're bound to get cravings like that," she said, shaking her head at the thought of them starving themselves to be cheerleaders.

Santana frowned. "I guess I should go see if she's alright," Santana said, hoping Holly wouldn't come with her.

"I'll come with," Holly informed, placing her hand on Santana's shoulder to lead her out of the room.

Santana rolled her eyes. "No," she yelled, then realized she sounded like a manic.

Holly looked at her strangely.

"I mean, Britt asked if I would come alone. She said not to worry you," she lied.

"She's my daughter, of course I'm worried," Holly answered; offended that Brittany would even say that.

Santana nodded impatiently. "I know, but you know how she is. She doesn't like you and Mr. P fussing over her. I'll come get you if she's really bad," Santana tried.

Holly sighed. "Alright. Tell her I'm here if she needs me," she said dejectedly.

Santana nodded and gave a small wave before racing back down the stairs and back to her house.

* * *

"Britt?" Santana asked, slowly opening her bathroom door. Her eyes widened at the sight of Brittany curled in the fetal position on the bathroom rug near the shower. She closed and locked the door behind her and knelt down next to her friend. "Britt what's the matter?" she asked worriedly, running the back of her hand over Brittany's forehead.

Brittany barely opened her eyes but felt a sense of relief when Santana's cool hand touched her burning skin. She didn't have a fever, she was sure of that, but her skin burned from the inside out.

She had woken up a little after five in a sweat. She couldn't remember what she dreamt, she never did, but the feeling she had when she was startled awake was not pleasant. She felt as if someone had been touching her, hurting her and she couldn't shake the feeling. The perspiration only continued as she sat there trying to calm down, and her normally exuberant form fell limp, making it seem as if everything weighed a ton.

She managed to drag herself from Santana's bed, grabbing her cell phone from the nightstand, but when her feet hit the floor, her legs collapsed and she fell to her knees. She looked back to make sure Santana was still sleeping before crawling across the floor into Santana's bathroom. She managed to lift the lid of the toilet before spilling the contents of worry, alcohol, and shame into it. After countless retching moments, she collapsed against the bathroom rug where she remained until Santana's call the next morning.

"Can you get me some water?" Brittany asked, her mouth dry and stale from her night of vomiting.

Santana quickly nodded, not knowing what to do first. She wanted to know if Brittany needed a doctor, or a hot wash cloth, or aspirin. She jumped from her position and grabbed a plastic bathroom cup to fill with water. She placed it on the counter before leaning back down to Brittany.

"Here Britt, sit up," she said softly, gently pulling her friend up under her arms so she could lean against the bathtub.

Brittany hugged her knees to her chest, smiling briefly when Santana handed her the water. She tried to sip it slowly, but one the liquid touched her tongue she couldn't help but swallow it in one gulp.

Santana took a seat next to her, wrapping her arm around her to pull her to her chest. She winced when Brittany slightly resisted, but continued to pull her into her arms. The two sat in silence, both swept up in their own thoughts.

"Britt did something happen last night besides drinking too much? You've been weird ever since we left the party," Santana noted, trying to get a look at Brittany's face, but the girl had it buried in her chest.

"Nothing out of the ordinary," she mumbled, refusing to lift her head.

Santana shook her head. "Britt are you taking your medicine?" she asked and immediately regretted it. Why did Mr. Pierce have to ask her that?

Brittany's head snapped up at the question, her eyes now alert and angered. She glared at Santana as she got up, limping her way out of the bathroom and into the bedroom.

Santana jumped up after her. "Britt wait I'm sorry. That was uncalled for," she called, gently grabbing her friend by the arm.

Brittany stopped her movement, mostly because she felt too weak to move any further. She leaned on Santana as she led her to her bed.

"Get in Britt," Santana whispered softly while pulling back her sheets. Once Brittany was under, she sat on top of the blankets next to Brittany's head. "What's going on Britt?" she asked for the hundredth time.

Brittany stared up at her friend. She wanted to tell Santana she was disgusted with herself, ashamed, fed up but she couldn't. She knew Santana didn't do well with hard situations. She closed herself off and chose to make jokes or cruel comments so she didn't have to deal with her emotions. Brittany was the only one she could let her guard down with, even if it was only a little. But Brittany didn't want to burden her with her problems.

"I fell on my way out of the party last night. I guess it's not a good idea to drink while I'm on these pills," she said softly.

"Is that why your limping?" Santana asked incredulously before adding, "Are you gonna be okay for your recital?" she continued, trying to move the covers down so she could look at Brittany's ankle, but the blonde wouldn't let her.

Brittany nodded slowly. "Yeah I just need to rest a little," she said, not wanting Santana to know the real reason. After she gave Matt the go, he took what she said literally and decided to go fast, too fast treating her like a ragdoll which left Brittany bruised and sore.

Santana accepted Brittany's excuse, but knew there was something more left out. She watched how her friend's face tensed with every slight movement and wondered if things went further than Brittany wanted with Matt last night. Shaking her head of the thought, she leaned down and brushed her lips against Brittany's forehead.

"Well you're in luck. I'm at your beck and call today missy," she said, trying to cheer Brittany up.

Brittany managed a small smile. "Thanks San," she said softly.

* * *

When Brittany walked into school Monday morning, she tried to ignore the harsh whispers of what she had done with Matt Edwards over the weekend as she walked to her locker. The words dumb slut, cheap hooker, kinky bitch flooded the hallways tagged along her name and she prayed to god her father didn't catch wind of them. She kept her head high like Santana had taught her long ago; acting as if she wasn't the one they were talking about or acting as if she simply didn't care. When she got to her locker, Santana was waiting with her arms crossed and sour look on her face. Brittany swallowed hard.

"Bathroom now," Santana said harshly while grabbing Brittany by the arm. She led them into the far bathroom ushering anyone out with a simple glare. Brittany pulled her arm from Santana's grasp, rubbing the squeezed flesh as her friend began to pace the bathroom floor.

"Do you hear what people are saying about you?" Santana finally screamed, raising her hands above her head. She hadn't been in the school for more than two minutes before hearing sleazy comments thrown out about her friend. She managed to get Puck and Finn to take of the slimy ingrate who was bragging about his night with Brittany, but she knew she would want a go herself when they were done him.

Brittany winced at the tone of Santana's voice, not expecting rage-full Santana so early in the morning. Sighing, she placed her backpack on the counter and jumped up next to it hanging her feet over the counter.

"Just like every Monday morning," she tried to play off, but even she could hear the pain in her voice.

Santana stopped pacing and stood in front of Brittany by the sinks. "No Britt, this is worse. That asshole is spreading lies about you, telling everyone that you're into submission and some shit like that," she yelled, wanting nothing more than to go all Lima Heights.

Brittany cackled. "Maybe I am," she challenged. She was tired of Santana playing games with her. One minute she acted as if she owned Brittany, she was sweet and loving and all the things Brittany could want in a partner. The next she treated her like a dumb Barbie who needed to be guided through life and was told what they do is wrong. If it was up to her, she would only be with Santana but the Latina wouldn't have it.

Santana stepped back, dumbfounded by Brittany's words. She carefully looked her friend over, from the top of her Cheerios' outfit to the bottom. Her eyes scanned Brittany's legs and although they were held together, she saw a purple bruising starting on the inside of her thigh. Leaning closer she grabbed Brittany's thigh.

"Santana what are you doing?" Brittany panicked while trying to pull Santana's hand away.

Santana ignored her and parted her friend's legs. She gasped at the fingerprint bruising across her thighs and nearly vomited when she pushed the bottom of her underwear to the side and saw how tender and wounded her privates looked. "Britt what the hell?" she yelled, raising her head to look Brittany in the eyes. "Did he hurt you?" she seethed, ready to attack.

Brittany couldn't stop the tears as she started to whimper. She didn't want to wear her uniform to school for this very reason. The bottom of the skirt barely covered the bruises on her inner thighs and she knew someone would see them. "It's okay San, I told him he could," she tried to defend, but her body began to shake and her legs began to bounce up and down against the counter in a nervous motion.

Santana wiped a tear from her own eye. "We have to tell your dad," she said in almost a panic. She didn't know what to do; she didn't know what to say.

Brittany jumped at the suggestion. "Are you crazy? I'm fine Santana. They're just bruises, they'll go away," she yelled.

Santana laughed bitterly. "What about the bruises that won't go away Britt. What about the… You lied to me. You told me you were okay, you" she tried but couldn't even finish without bursting into tears. Brittany's words replayed in her mind from the night before. '_It was too hard.'_ She felt herself hunch over, grabbing onto Brittany's waist as she cried into her lap.

Brittany remained stoic with her hands on Santana's back. She didn't want her friend to cry for her, she did this to herself. "It's alright San. By tomorrow they'll be talking about Rachel trying to steal Finn from Quinn again. I can deal," she admitting, moving her left hand up to stroke through Santana's ponytail.

Santana lifted her head from Brittany's lap. "You shouldn't have to deal Britt. Don't you know how special you are?" she asked deeply, wanting Brittany to see how much she cared for her.

Brittany smirked. "People tell me I'm special all the time," she joked but her smile faded at the seriousness on Santana.

"You're worth so much more than you give yourself credit for Britt. I don't get how you don't see it," she laughed, shaking her head at her friend's lack of self worth.

Brittany laughed too. "The same way you don't see it about yourself," she answered and their eyes remained locked until the late bell interrupted.

* * *

William Pierce smiled to the students he recognized as he made his way to his office that afternoon. He wouldn't say he was a school favorite, but mostly everyone that had him as a teacher respected and liked him. He passed by a group of football players, congratulating them on their almost win and when he walked by he didn't notice the sexual gestures they were making his way while mocking his daughter.

When walking by the gym he saw the Cheerios practicing some elaborate number, Sue in the corner screaming for them to work harder. He quickly searched for his daughter, wanting to see how she was doing but was left searching with his eyes again and again to find her. Frowning, he made his way into the gym next to Sue.

"Again," Sue yelled, holding the megaphone towards the perspiring cheerleaders. "You will not stop until I am impressed ladies," she yelled before turning her attention to her brillo padded friend. "Needed to see a winning team William?" she smiled while pushing her finger into the cleft of his chin.

Will shook her off and rubbed the spot she touched. "Where are Brittany and Santana?" he asked, knowing they never missed a practice.

Sue narrowed her eyes. "Blondie had an extra dance rehearsal for her recital and J-Lo had some family emergency," she said with a bored tone. "I would have kicked them off, but without them I don't have a show," she said and swiftly got in Will's face. "Do not repeat that."

Will looked at Sue confused. Brittany didn't have any extra dance rehearsal, she was golden and had her routine down by heart. And Holly never called him with an emergency from the Lopez's.

"Thanks Sue," he said smiling politely and headed back in the direction of his office. He checked his watch and grabbed his phone out of his pocket. Just as the phone began to ring to home, a voice interrupted.

"Mr. Pierce, can we talk?" a voice said.

Will sighed and closed his phone, turning towards a voice he could recognize in his sleep. "Of course Rachel," he said.

"It's about Brittany," she continued.

Will raised his eyebrows with interest. Nodding, he led her into his office.

TBC


	5. Chapter Four

Holly jumped while placing a bowl of mashed potatoes down on the kitchen table when her husband entered the house slamming the door behind him. She gave a comforting look to her two youngest and met Will in the foyer. She immediately knew the slam wasn't a mistake by the redness of his face.

"Where's Brittany?" he asked, his tone angered and rough. He threw his briefcase next to the coat rack and started towards the kitchen with determined steps.

Holly walked after him confused. "She's out with Santana. They were gonna grab dinner," she informed while trying to grab his arm.

His steps halted. "Get her home now," he said as calm as he could to his wife, but inside it felt like he would explode. He bypassed the kitchen table and went straight into his home office without acknowledging his other children.

Holly began to worry, knowing her husband rarely got mad, especially at their children. Whatever their daughter did must have been bad, really bad. Sighing, she turned to Tommy and Jessica.

"Start eating guys, I'll be right back," she encouraged, giving a brief smile before following her husband.

Inside his office, Will was pacing the carpet with his head in his hands.

"Will what happened?" she asked worriedly.

Will looked up with tears in his eyes. "There are rumors going around the school about Brittany," he informed his voice full of disgust. "Apparently our daughter is the school slut," he said angered.

Holly's eyes widened.

* * *

Brittany stared at the sky trying to make animal pictures out of the stars but she couldn't focus. She and Santana had spent the day skipping classes and walking around town, eventually ending up at the town lake lounged out on one of their cheerleading blankets. They barely talked and when they did it wasn't about Brittany's hookup. Santana managed to cover their tracks, letting coach Sylvester know they wouldn't be at practice and texting their mothers that they would be out for dinner.

Santana stared at Brittany from her side of the blanket. She couldn't understand how someone so innocent could be so besmirched. Sighing, she tapped her hand against the back of Brittany's to get her attention.

Brittany's eyes snapped away from the sky and into her lap. "You think I'm gross," she whispered sadly. She had been waiting the whole day for Santana to yell at her and dismiss their friendship for what she had done. She was glad she had a pair of cheer sweats in her locker to change into before they left. She really didn't feel like being on display the whole day.

Santana immediately shook her head. "I do not. I'm worried about you though. Why would you let someone do that to you?" she asked seriously as she turned Brittany's face towards her with her hand under her chin. She held it there, gently stroking the soft flesh.

Brittany sighed. "I didn't want to. I just felt really tired and I told him to be fast. He took it the wrong way and started going too hard. I told him to stop but he just held me down telling me he likes kinky bitches," she said while starting to cry.

Santana winced. "Britt you told him to stop. He raped you," she explained gently, continuing to caress her face. She gently wiped any tears falling from her blue eyes.

Brittany shook her head. "I just wanted to find you and leave because my head was getting foggy from the alcohol. He kept hitting on me and Quinn said you were busy with Puck so I followed him up to Katie's room. I just wanted to lie down. He started kissing me and I just went with it. Then he started feeling me up and I told him I wanted to go back downstairs. He kept saying stuff like I do it with everyone what's the difference and it made me think. What was the difference?" she asked with defeat.

Santana shook her head. "The difference is you didn't want it Brittany. You are not a ragdoll people can play with. Why do you hate yourself so much?" she yelled while getting up from her position. She walked to the edge of the lake, staring madly at the sky.

Brittany scoffed. She followed Santana and roughly turned her to face her. Face to Face both saw the complexities of each other, and finally Brittany was brave enough to speak. "I hate myself because I'll never be good enough for you," she admitted lowly. Once the words left her mouth, she realized what she had said and took off full speed away from the park.

Santana's eyes widened. "Britt where are you going?" she yelled and started to quickly grab their things so she could chase after her.

Brittany ran in what she hoped was the direction of home, tears falling from her face like a wicked rainstorm. She heard Santana calling her but refused to look back. She didn't want to hear Santana tell her they could never be together the way they wanted again. She was tired of that speech, tired of holding in her feelings.

Santana followed behind, refusing to give up until she reached Brittany. She stopped calling her name and concentrated on catching up but Brittany was a skilled runner. When they reached their street she gained momentum and ran until she reached the sidewalk in front of Brittany's house where Brittany was leaned over to catch her breath.

"Britt," she tried out of breath.

"Santana we need to speak with Brittany alone," Will said, surprising both Santana and Brittany. He had been out on the front porch waiting for any sign of his daughter.

Brittany looked up confused. She had never heard her dad use the tone he was speaking. Glad for the distraction, she nodded and went inside without acknowledging Santana.

Santana started up the lawn but Mr. Pierce held his hand up. "Not tonight San. We really need to talk with Brittany," he said.

Santana looked at him strangely. He looked all out of sorts and Santana hoped nothing serious happened. Nodding, she continued to her driveway and glanced back once more to see Mr. Pierce closing the front door behind him.

* * *

Brittany was starved when she walked into the house. Although Santana had told their parents that they were eating out, the only thing they ate all day was a couple candy bars from the convenience store they stopped at on the way to the lake. When entering the kitchen she found her mom with her head down at the kitchen table, a cup of steaming tea resting in front of her.

"Hey mom," she said quietly, not knowing if her mother wasn't feeling well. She made her way to the refrigerator, hoping to find leftovers from dinner.

"Britt baby sit down. Your father and I wanna talk to you," her mother said when lifting her head from the table. She had spent the entire night trying to calm Will down, assuring him that they would take care of the idiots spreading vicious lies about their daughter.

Brittany sighed and grabbed an apple from the fruit bowl on the island counter. She took a seat across from her mother just as Will walked in. He smiled comfortingly to his wife before sitting in his usual seat.

"Who died?" Brittany asked bluntly while biting into her apple. She felt the tension in the house as soon as she walked in.

Will looked at her strangely. "Britt a student came to me today and told me about some rumors going around. Do you know anything about this sweetheart?" he asked gently, placing his hand over hers.

Brittany's skin immediately heated up and she could barely swallow the piece of apple in her mouth. She never expected the rumors to get to her father, teachers rarely paid attention to the gossip going around school. Her legs began to nervously bounce up and down under the table.

"Britt I'm gonna talk to principal Figgins tomorrow. Whoever started these rumors is going to get in trouble don't worry," he comforted, realizing she was getting upset.

Brittany stared wide eyed at her parents. "I," she stuttered, not believing that they found out. The fact that they didn't even believe the rumors upset her more.

"Britt people say mean things when they're jealous. Do you know who could have started it? Are you having trouble with anyone at school?" Holly asked with warm eyes.

Brittany bit her lip in contemplation. With everything that's been happening with Santana and constant need to fill the void with useless hookups; she debated whether blabbing the truth to her parents. Letting them know what kind of daughter they really have.

Will saw the uncomfortable look on his daughter's face. He gently stroked her hand and leaned forward so he was closer. "Britt don't worry. Me and mom don't believe what they say for a second. We know you sweetheart," he encouraged, hoping to make her feel more at ease.

His words struck a nerve. "Do you know me?" she snapped, making both her parents look at her curiously. "Maybe you should believe what they said, it's the truth," she yelled while ripping her hand from her father's grasp.

Will's eyes narrowed. "Brittany what are you talking about?" her father asked, anger slowly seeping back into his bones, only this time towards his daughter.

Holly shook her head. "Britt don't believe what they're saying about you baby. It's not true," Holly said.

Brittany smiled wickedly. "It is true mom. I'm the school slut. The girl guys find at parties to up their reputations. Santana, Quinn, and I haven't had a sleepover all year. We go to parties every weekend where I find a guy and…" she yelled, but was stopped from a hand slamming on the table, her father's hand.

"Stop," he yelled, tears streaming down his face. "Just stop, you're breaking my heart," he cried, refusing to look in Brittany's direction. He hid his face in his hand and tried to block out the painfully admission his daughter had made.

"Well now we're even because my heart's been broken long before yours," she yelled while rising from her chair.

Holly stood with her. "Brittany calm down. Let's talk about this," she tried, knowing one of them had to hold it together.

Brittany shook her head furiously. "I'm tired," she yelled. "I'm tired of doing what everyone else wants me to do," she continued and without looking at her parents she fled to the front door.

"Brittany come back," Holly yelled, but her statement was left unanswered with a slam of the door.

Will looked up from his hands. "I thought she was happy. I thought she was finally…" he sobbed but couldn't finish. He dug his head into Holly's stomach as she hugged him, letting out years of tears he held in for his little girl.

* * *

Santana tried blocking out Brittany's confession as she got ready for bed that night. She distracted herself with making rude comments to Rachel Berry on Facebook and phone sex with Puck, but the whole time the back of her mind was letting her worries about Brittany in. How could Brittany think she wasn't good enough for her? In Santana's mind, it was total opposite.

"Sweetheart you're going to bed early. You feeling alright?" Santana's mother asked as she walked by her daughter's room. She was surprised to find the lights off and Santana's shadowed figure getting into bed.

Santana slightly jumped at the intrusion while getting under the covers. "I'm fine, just really tired," she said hopefully implying to her mother that she didn't want to talk.

Maribel either didn't get the hint or simply didn't care as she took a seat on the edge of her daughter's bed. Smiling, she took a moment to stare at her pride and joy.

Santana watched her mother's gaze and began getting uncomfortable. Did Brittany's parents call with bad news? Did she know about her and Brittany's "sleepovers?" "Ma why are you looking at me like that?" she finally asked.

Maribel chuckled. "Little firecracker, remember that's what daddy and I used to call you," she reminisced why stroking the back of her hand down Santana's cheek.

Santana smiled fondly. "Yeah because you never knew when I was gonna explode," she laughed.

Maribel smiled. "What's going on baby? You've been acting a little different lately. Are things okay at school?" she asked.

Santana's eyes widened. "Yeah, everything's fine," she said a little defensively.

"Are you still seeing that boy? He's not pressuring you is he?" she asked, hoping to get to the bottom of her daughter's weird behavior.

"No ma he's not pressuring me," she rolled her eyes.

"Did you and Britt get into a fight?" she asked, checking off her list of questions in her head.

Santana breathed deeply through her nose. "Mom everything's fine," she yelled while trying to turn her back away from her mother but her mother held her in place.

"Then why did I get a phone call from the school saying you weren't in any of your classes?" she asked with a tilt to her head. She smiled inwardly at the caught expression her daughter's face.

Santana bit her lip. "Britt's been having a bit of trouble. I just wanted to help her out," she admitted without going into detail.

Maribel narrowed her eyes. "Is she okay? Is she taking her medicine?" she asked.

"Yes she's taking her medicine. She's just going through something right now and I figured a day away from school would make her feel a little better. You know a mental health day," she tried, hoping her mother was in a forgiving mood.

Maribel smirked. "You know how your father and I feel about skipping school baby. If Brittany's having trouble then you should get her to talk to her parents. It's not your responsibly," she said.

"She's my best friend Ma, of course I'm going to worry about her," she challenged, not liking the lack of concern her mother displayed towards Brittany.

"We all love Brittany, Santana. But if she's having trouble she needs to go to an adult," Maribel insisted.

Santana glared. "Whatever, can I go to sleep now?" she asked not bothering to hide attitude in her tone.

Maribel sighed. "No more skipping or there will be consequences. I love you," she said while leaning down to kiss Santana's forehead.

"Love you too," Santana said with an annoyed tone.

Smiling, Maribel kissed her one last time before leaving and shutting the door behind her.

Santana sighed deeply and closed her eyes. Just as she was about to fall asleep, her cell phone lit up on her nightstand, playing a tropical song. Craning her head, she reached for the phone.

QUINN: Britt's crying hysterically in my room. I have no idea what to do; she's too out of it to even listen to me.

Santana squinted at the words. What was Brittany doing at Quinn's? Sitting up, she threw the covers from her body and turned her night table light on. She quickly searched for a matching pair of sweats and sweatshirt and typed back to Quinn as she put them on.

SANTANA: I'm coming now. Do her parents know she's there?

While tying her sneakers, she glanced in the mirror. She grabbed a brush and pulled her hair into a neat ponytail. She quietly left her room and snuck past her parents, closing the front door softly behind her. As she made her way down the driveway, Mr. Pierce appeared from his front porch.

"Whoa Mr. P you scared me," she jumped and held her hand over her heart.

Mr. Pierce smiled apologetically. "Sorry San. Can you tell Britt to come home now? We've given her the space she needs and now she needs to talk with us," he said while trying not to show his frustration.

Santana looked at him confused. Sighing, she didn't need Quinn to answer anymore. "She's at Quinn's house. I was just heading over there. But uh, don't mention that to my parents if you see them," she said hoping he was too distracted with Brittany to worry about telling on her like he usually did.

Will grabbed his hair. "She walked to Quinn's? She's there right? You talked to her?" he asked disbelievingly. He hated when Brittany wandered off because that was what she usually did, wandered. She never made to where she said she was going.

Santana nodded. "Quinn just texted me," she said.

Will sighed. "I'm going over there," he informed, turning to get his things.

"Wait no Mr. P. Quinn said she's pretty upset. Let me and Q talk to her. We'll make sure she gets to school in the morning," Santana encouraged. She didn't know why Mr. Pierce was adamant about talking to Brittany, but she hoped he didn't find out about the gossip going around school.

Will paused, taking a moment to gather his thoughts. He knew Brittany wouldn't be in a state to sit down and talk with him and Holly. She didn't work like that. She needed time and he knew Santana would take care of her. Nodding, he placed a hand on Santana's shoulder.

"Tell her we love her and that everything is gonna be okay," he said softly.

Santana nodded, but feared asking what he was talking about. Did Brittany tell them she was raped? "I'll tell her," she said and gave one final comforting smile before walking away.

* * *

Quinn was waiting for Santana on her porch. Luckily her parents were on some Christian getaway cruise so she had the house to herself.

"Brittany is freaking out San. I've never seen her like this," Quinn started as soon as Santana reached the steps.

Santana's eyes widened. "Where is she?" she asked alarmed. How long did Quinn leave her by herself?

"She locked herself in my bathroom. I've been trying to get her out for like an hour. That's why I texted you. She came over all pissed off and when I asked her what was wrong she just flipped. She started throwing things around in my room and then she just changed emotions like a switch. She started balling and when I went to hug her, she pushed me away and ran in my bathroom," Quinn explained worriedly.

Santana winced. Brittany hadn't acted like this the time she was hospitalized. Sighing, Santana began to pace the porch with worry.

"She's not gonna calm down by force," Santana started. "We're just gonna have to wait till she's run herself down," she continued, stopping mid step to see Quinn's reaction.

Quinn shook her head. "She's locked in the bathroom San. Who knows what she'll do in there if we don't intervene," she said, shaking her head of thoughts of Brittany doing something stupid.

Santana nodded and started for the front door. "Wait here. I might need you to call her parents," she added before going inside.

* * *

The house was quiet, almost too quiet for Santana's taste. She quickly jogged up Quinn's long spiral staircase and headed towards the bathroom in Quinn's bedroom.

"Shit," she whispered as she walked into Quinn's room. She wasn't exaggerating when she said Brittany threw things all over her room. She placed her hand on the closed bathroom door, hoping by some chance Brittany forgot to lock it, but no such luck.

"Britt," she called softly while tapping on the door but received no answer. "Britt, it's me open the door," she said more firmly. When no movement was made she began to get nervous.

Panicking, she began jiggling the doorknob and pushing her weight against the door. "Britt," she called again and banged her hand flat against the wooden door.

Images of an unconscious Brittany flooded her mind, imaging Brittany had worked herself up to the point of passing out. She was about to rip the door from its hinges, standing back a bit to run into it when she heard the click of the lock on the other side.

Letting out a sigh of relief, she twisted the knob and slowly opened the door, not wanting to hit Brittany on the other side. Her face turned a ghostly white when she came face to face with her best friend. Brittany was leaned against the bathtub, arms wrapped tightly around her stomach. Santana winced at her swollen eyelids, knowing she must have been crying pretty hard to produce that much puffiness. Kneeling down in front of her, she gently pushed back Brittany's hanging hair, tucking strands of it behind her ears so she could see her eyes.

"Britt look at me," she whispered while rubbing her pointer finger under Brittany's chin.

Brittany met her eyes momentarily before bringing her hand up to wipe under her nose. She was exhausted and wanted nothing more to fall into a deep sleep forever. She tried keeping her breathing under control but ever so often a whimper would escape and she would have to catch her breath to keep from sobbing again.

Santana pulled Brittany's arms away from their tight hold and pulled her into her chest. "What happened Britt," she whispered.

Brittany stiffened in the hold and started to push Santana away but she was too exhausted to do anything but weakly poke at her. Santana grabbed tighter and kissed the side of Brittany's head before sitting back against the tub herself and pulling Brittany into her lap. Defeated, Brittany rested her head in the crook of Santana's neck, hoping sleep would overcome her.

* * *

Santana didn't know how much time passed, but her backside was starting to ache from the dead weight of Brittany snuggled into her. It wasn't long after they moved into the position that she fell asleep. Sighing, she continued to rub her hand along Brittany's arms and hands while the girl slept off her exhaustion.

"San," Quinn whispered while peeking her head into the bathroom before entering. She carefully took a seat next to Santana, trying not to disturb Brittany. "Is she okay?" she asked softly.

Santana shook her head. "She wouldn't talk. She passed out pretty much after she let me in. I think maybe we should call Will and Holly. I don't know what she's gonna be like when she gets up," Santana admitted worriedly.

Quinn nodded and pulled her cell phone from her back pocket. As she dialed her friend's parents, she softly ran her hand over Brittany's cheek. "Mrs. Pierce, it's Quinn. I think you and Mr. Pierce should come over."

TBC


	6. Chapter Six

**I know it's been a ****while. I apologize and hope you are still interested in reading :)**

* * *

When Brittany opened her eyes the room started to spin in front of her. She grabbed her temples with one hand and the spot below her with the other, quickly realizing she was grasping Santana's thigh. She felt paralyzed; her body draped over Santana which was odd because the last thing she remembered was coming to Quinn's house upset. Memories of her trashing Quinn's room came back and she remembered grabbing a notebook she found on the floor and taking it into the bathroom. She then remembered what she wrote and began feeling around for the letter in a panic.

Santana tried to steady Brittany's movements by gripping onto her shoulders but the action only startled her. "It's me Britt," she whispered cautiously. She steadied her hold to keep Brittany's shaking pale form in place.

Brittany squinted from the light and gave up on the note, burying her face in the crook of Santana's neck to stop the dizziness.

"Britt, baby, are you okay?" she heard the voice of her father. Will was knelt next to them with his hand placed firmly on Brittany's leg. He was worried, but knew he had to keep it together for everyone.

"Will, maybe we should call an ambulance," Holly panicked over his shoulder. She watched helplessly as their daughter continued to withdraw from them, opening and closing her eyes against Santana's chest.

The word ambulance immediately registered in Brittany's brain making her jump up in protest. "No," she yelled, "I'm okay, I just need to," she said trying to catch her breath. Sitting up too quickly was throwing off her balance.

"You need to go to the hospital," Holly answered while bending down to help her daughter get up.

Santana pushed Brittany up while Holly pulled her into a standing position. Once Brittany was up, Santana got off the ground and stood next to the Pierce's with worry.

"Mrs. Pierce I called an ambulance, they're on their way," Quinn said while rushing into the already crammed bathroom.

Santana winced at the terrified look on Brittany's face. This wasn't going to be good.

* * *

Will sat next to Brittany's hospital bed hunched over with his hands in his hair. The ride to the hospital made him even more anxious, one because Holly had ridden in the ambulance with Brittany and two, he had let Santana drive. With only having her permit for a short amount of time, he prayed they wouldn't need to be checked into the hospital as well.

"Miss Pierce I presume." A tall lanky middle aged man with childlike features entered the room with a clipboard in his hand. He walked to the foot of the bed, alternating his view from Brittany to the notes in front of him.

Brittany smiled politely while clutching her mother's hand in a death grip. Holly winced at the hold and raised her other hand to brush Brittany's bangs from her face. The three sat in silence while the doctor read over Brittany's charts.

"Alright while it seems here Brittany had experienced quite a panic attack today. How are you feeling at this moment Brittany? Any dizziness, heart palpitations, sweats," he asked while moving closer. He reached in his pocket and pulled out a mini flashlight and shined it at her eyes. "Your eyes remind me of the ocean," he smiled, trying to get her to relax.

Brittany gulped nervously, trying not to squirm as he poked and probed her. "I'm okay now, just not too excited to be here," she said lowly. She listened to his instructions, breathing in deep when he held the stethoscope to her heart and sticking out her tongue when he shined the light at her mouth.

The doctor laughed. "Well don't worry, you don't have to stay," he informed.

Will looked up hopeful. "She doesn't?" he asked. All he could think about was the episode Brittany had years ago, the memory haunting him to this day.

The doctor shook his head. "No everything seems to be back in order. Brittany your blood pressure is at a normal level, we did an EKG and that came back perfect, everything physically is how it should be," he explained.

Brittany sighed with relief.

"However," the doctor started, making Brittany grimace. "I do want to get to the bottom of these panic attacks. I understand you're on Adderal for ADHD?" he asked, looking to Will and Holly. He smiled sympathetically at the pained look on their faces.

"She's been on a off a few medications since she was twelve," Holly answered.

Brittany listened to the three talk about her as if she weren't in the room for several minutes. The only phrases she picked up on through her foggy daze were 'break from medication', 'therapist', 'and high stress causes outburst like these'. She shook her head, trying to release the jumbled thoughts. Moments later the doctor patted her knee with a friendly smile before leaving her alone with her parents.

Will sighed heavily while standing up from his chair to stretch his legs. He grabbed at his face roughly while walking to the room's window. Holly moved onto the bed next to Brittany, wrapping her arm around her daughter.

"What did he say?" Brittany finally asked, her voice small and childlike.

Holly brushed a kiss across her forehead. "The doctor thinks maybe we should look into you going to talk to someone," she started and kissed Brittany's forehead again.

Brittany scrunched her face up in confusion. "Why do I need to talk to someone? I'm fine," she said. The last thing she needed was a shrink to confess her deepest and darkest secrets to.

Will turned from the window, "You're not fine," he said angrily, flashing back to the conversation in the kitchen.

Brittany winced at his anger, her cheeks beginning to reddened.

Holly glared at Will before turning back to her daughter. "Baby, you said some things in the kitchen that have your father and I concerned. You've been acting so distraught lately and you think you're hiding it, but we can see right through it," she explained gently.

Single tears started to fall from Brittany's eyes. She reached up to wipe them, sniffling as more formed. She couldn't believe she had lost her temper so much that she confessed one of the things she was most ashamed about to her parents. She wondered if they thought she was slut like the rest of the school did.

Will's heart broke at the sight of his daughter breaking down. He shook the anger from his body and rushed to the other side of his daughter, taking the place of her hand to wipe her tears. "We love you sweetheart, and we want you to be happy," he said, tears of his own falling to his cheeks.

"I," Brittany started but her throat began to tighten as she tried to get the words out. Each attempt was choked down and eventually she began to sob. Will and Holly formed a barricade around her, both holding her tight against them as she wept in their embrace.

"You can tell us anything baby," Holly encouraged, meeting Will's eyes as she spoke to their daughter.

Brittany covered her face with her hands, she was so distraught the tears fell right through the cracks between her fingers onto her lap. "I'm," she tried, but still couldn't form the words.

Will tightened his hold on his daughter, reaching a hand up to remove Brittany's hands from her face. She let out deep breaths, trying to regain her strength. "Britt," he said helplessly. He wished he could calm her, wished just his hold on her would relief all the pain she was feeling.

Brittany closed her eyes and took three deep breaths before looking up towards her parents. She knew it was now or never. She grabbed both of their hands, needing to feel their strength before sobbing out "I wrote a letter, read the letter," she said, pointing her shaking hands towards the bag her clothes were in.

She felt her parents hands tighten and she sobbed even more thinking they were going to disown her afterwards.

Holly pulled the jeans Brittany had been wearing from the bag and found a folded up note in the back pocket. She sat in the hospital chair next to the bed, beckoning Will over with her finger so they could read it together. He kissed Brittany's cheek and walked around the bed to stand behind his wife.

Brittany closed her eyes tightly, not wanting to see their reaction.

_Dear Mom and Dad,_

_I've crumbled up about five different openings to this letter. With all the great things about our relationship (the closeness, the openness, the bond, the love), there is one thing you don't know about me. Something I've tried to escape or avoid because I never want you to look at me differently than the way you do now. _

_I've been wanting to tell you this for years. I would work up enough courage to say it and then lost it as soon as the words needed to come out. _

_I love men. I'm attracted to them and like kissing them. But there's a part of me that has those feelings about women too. I feel like I can't go on any longer without you knowing this about me. It feels like a dirty secret kept away in my head. I feel like because I keep this hidden I have a hard time with the rest of my life. I think these are issues that won't be resolved unless I let this out. I am bisexual._

_You have to know this is the hardest thing I've ever done. It's just been bottle up in me for so long and I feel like I might explode if I don't let it out. It's extremely hard to put myself out here like this and I hope it won't change our relationship. I hope I haven't disappointed you or made you feel ashamed of me because that is the last thing I want. The only reason I am even telling you this is because I can't hold it in anymore. I can't and you've always been the two people I can always count on. I love you both and I'm telling you this because I love you and want you to know me for me. I do understand if you are disgusted and want to spend some time apart. I don't even know if I explained myself well, but I did try to let you in on what I've been feeling for a long time now. Now that I've admitted it to myself and now to you, maybe I'll finally be able to accomplish what I've wanted all along, to be happy. _

_Love,_

_Brittany_

Brittany felt four arms wrap around her at once and she jumped at the contact. When kisses invaded her cheeks, she opened her eyes and felt herself smiling.

"We love you so much Brittany," Will whispered, pulling back to stroke his finger over Brittany's nose.

Holly smiled, kissing the spot he touched.

Brittany looked at them weary. "You do?" she asked, her voice almost non-existent.

Both parents chuckled. "Honey I'm so proud of you for having the guts to tell us this, but," she started and Brittany waited for the harsh words she thought would come. "But sweetheart we already knew," she answered.

Brittany's mouth dropped at the information. 'How could they have known?' she wondered.

Will laughed at her expression. "We aren't disappointed Britt, we could never be disappointed in you. Your heart is so big and you are such a wonderful person. We don't care who you love, as long as the person makes you happy."

Brittany's eyes lit up at their words, feeling as if a ton of bricks were released from her insides. "I love you guys so much," she said wiping tear from her eyes, only this time they were happy tears.

"We just have one question," Holly asked, looking to Will with knowing eyes.

Brittany nodded, "Sure, ask me anything."

"Is there something going on between you and Santana?" Will questioned.

Brittany's eyes widened as she swallowed a loud gulp.

* * *

Santana paced the waiting room floor, cursing the staff and their stupid rules. "Family only right now," she mumbled sarcastically to herself, repeating what the nurse told her every time she tried to break into Brittany's room.

Quinn watched her friend from the hard plastic seat she had been sitting in for three hours. She tried ever tactic to calm Santana down, but she knew nothing would help until Santana was seated next to Brittany. She refrained from telling the glee club about Brittany, not knowing if her friend wanted the rest of the crew knowing what happened. Instead, she had to hold it together for Santana and the Pierce's and be the rock they all needed to get through this.

Santana through her hands up in the air. "This is fucking ridiculous. It's been three hours. What the hell is going on," she yelled, not caring about the looks she received from the other waiting individuals.

Quinn jumped from her seat and grabbed Santana's arm, pulling towards the isolated hallway.

"What the heck Q," she yelled, stumbling over her shoes as she was dragged away.

"You're embarrassing me," Quinn yelled through gritted teeth, "Just sit down and shut up for a minute will you," she continued.

Santana scoffed. "You have some nerve, you know," she said.

Before Quinn could respond, she spotted Will making his way towards them.

"Hey girls," he said, placing a hand on each of their shoulders.

"How is she?" both of them asked at once.

Will smiled. "She's great. Everything is stable and she can go home probably in an hour," he said.

Santana breathed out a sigh of relief, clutching her hand to her heart. Will bit his lip and turned to Quinn. "Can I have a minute with San?" he asked gently. "You can go in and see Britt now," he added.

Quinn nodded politely and rushed in the direction of Brittany's room. Santana glared at her best friend's father. "Can't this wait Mr. P, I want to see Brittany," she said.

Will gently pushed her towards the only bench seat in the hallway. Santana sighed, waiting for him to say what he had to say. Will looked to the side thoughtfully, thinking of how to begin this conversation.

"You're like a third daughter to me Santana," he began trying to hold back the tears creeping up. He rubbed at his nose before meeting the girl's eyes. "You've always been the one me and Holly could count on to look out for Britt when we couldn't and you don't know how much we love you Santana," he continued.

Santana's eyes softened, knowing Brittany got her sensitive, emotional side from her father. She grabbed Will's hand and gave it a soft squeeze, urging him to continue.

"San, you've been hard headed your whole life, just like Brittany's been, well Brittany," he laughed. "I know you love my little girl, I see it in your eyes Santana, and I see it in your actions. You don't treat anyone else like the way you do Brittany, not even yourself," he said.

Santana's heart fell, she didn't like where this conversation was going. She knew she did a horrible job at hiding the feelings she had for Brittany, but she never thought people would acknowledge them. She hoped they would ignore it, make excuses for how close they were because of how young they were when they met. She pulled her hand from Will's, using it to pinch the skin on her wrist. She was getting uncomfortable.

"And just as you have been obvious to me and Holly, Brittany has as well," he added, watching the breakdown of Santana's emotions right in front of him, something she tried to her best to hide.

"What are you saying Will?" Santana asked, her voice shaky and hard.

Will grabbed her hand back and pulled on it to get her attention. "I'm saying it's okay to be in love with my daughter Santana. Because I know how much she loves you back," he said, leaning in to kiss her forehead. He squeezed her hands once more and got up, sending her one last loving glance before walking away.

Ragged breaths escaped her, not believing the words just spoken. She never expected Brittany to tell her parents about them. On one hand she was extremely angry, angry that Brittany would out her like that. But on another, she felt reconciliation, because it gave her hope for her own parents.

* * *

"Hey."

Brittany looked up from her hospital bed. She had been getting dressed and was tying her shoes when Santana walked in. She briefly smiled before returning to the task.

"My parents send their love. They both have important meetings, otherwise they would have been here," Santana tried, hoping she'd get more than a fake smile.

Brittany nodded again.

Santana sighed, knowing Brittany was still upset with her. She wished she had told Brittany her true feelings at the park. Maybe none of this would have happened then. She walked over and took a seat next to Brittany, gently lifting her by the chin so she would meet her eyes.

Brittany stared into the eyes she knew so well, her own glazed over with feelings of love and resentment. They both sat for minutes, Brittany waiting for Santana to speak and Santana thinking of how to begin.

Santana reached across the bed and grabbed Brittany's hand. "Britt I'm so sorry," she started, threading Brittany's fingers between her own.

Brittany only nodded, waiting for more. She needed to hear more because today wasn't like the others. Today was a time to change everything or move on.

Santana swallowed nervously. "I always knew I looked at you differently, even as a kid. Other kids annoyed me so much and even when we started becoming friends with Quinn I knew it was different. I always wanted to be near you, I still do," she admitted, her voice wavering with emotion.

Brittany smiled softly, knowing how hard it was to admit to something you were deathly afraid of.

"The first time you went in to kiss me, I panicked. Panicked because I had thought about doing it so many times before and never thinking it would actually happen. I thought I was the only one who thought about it. And when you went in for it so nonchalant, I thought 'wow maybe every girl thinks about this stuff,'" she said.

"Girls who like other girls think about that stuff Santana," Brittany said, tired of Santana denying who she really was.

Santana held up her hand. "Let me finish," she said gently.

Brittany nodded.

"The second our lips touched I knew I loved you more than a friend Brittany. Everything became clear and I was so overwhelmed because I felt like it wasn't normal. I was ashamed for liking it and afraid I wasn't going to be able to get it out of mind. And I wasn't. The more we kissed, the more I felt alive and when we started having sex I just knew. I knew sleeping with boys wasn't the same anymore. I've found girls attractive before you and those thoughts were easy to push away because I didn't know them. I could make excuses for why I was looking at them that way," she continued, feeling like she was rambling and not making any sense.

Brittany squeezed her hand for her to continue. She had never witnessed Santana like this before, so open and vulnerable.

"I just, I always admired how open you were with me about your sexuality. You don't care what people think," she said.

"I do though San," Brittany interrupted. "I never wanted my parents to know, and even though I seem confident about it, I'm really not. I'm terrified what people think about me. I hate walking into school after the weekends to hear people whispering about what I did with who," she yelled, working herself up again.

Santana moved in closer, wrapping her arms around Brittany in a hug. "Shhh," she whispered, rubbing her hand up and down Brittany's back.

Brittany nestled into the embrace, burying her face into the crook of Santana's neck.

"Britt," Santana whispered.

Brittany turned her head, touching her forehead against Santana's.

Their eyes meant, blue to brown, and both leaned in at the same time, softly bringing their lips together. Brittany's eyes closed first, relishing in the feeling of home. When Santana was with her she felt safe and peaceful. Soft breaths escaped in between kisses and eventually they pulled away.

"I want to be with you Brittany. I want to hold hands walking down the hallway and kiss without anyone batting an eye," she said. "But that's not gonna happen. People will talk behind our backs and say things to our faces, horrible things Britt," she continued, watching Brittany's face drop. "But if we're brave together, I think we'll be okay. In the past, one of us was always brave for the other, but we're never brave together B and I think if we can do that, me and you will rule the world," she finished, hoping that exposing herself to Brittany was the right thing to do.

Brittany took the words in. She never imagined a conversation like this with Santana. She thought they would continue their unspoken relationship for another year or so and one of them would eventually end it. She knew the past years have been tough on her, heart wrenching every time Santana didn't acknowledge her feelings towards her or walked away when Brittany tried expressing them. But she never thought of Santana's side, the side she just told.

"I've never felt more close to you than I do now," she said softly, pressing her nose to Santana's. "You don't know how happy I am that you opened up to me like this. I was at the end of my rope San, but you just extended it like a billion feet," she said making Santana chuckle.

Santana reached her hand up to brush away a strand of hair from Brittany's eyes. "So does that mean you wanna be brave with me?" she asked, her heart never have beat so fast.

Brittany smiled. "It's all I ever wanted San," she said, leaning into kiss the lips she longed for.

Santana smiled into the kiss, wrapping her hand through Brittany's hair and pulling her head towards her to deepen the kiss. Her tongue sneaked out and pushed its way into Brittany's mouth, needing to feel the connection she only felt with the girl in front of her. Both pulled back breathless, smiles adorning their face.

"I love you Brittany," Santana said out loud for the first time. Her heart felt light and now that she finally said what she wanted for so many years, she never wanted to stop.

"I love you Santana," Brittany replied and placed her lips back where they belonged.

* * *

The mood was much lighter on the way home from the hospital and Will even let Santana drive. They dropped Quinn off at home before going to Holly's parents to pick their other two children up. She and Will had dropped them off after Quinn's frantic phone call. Once home, even though they didn't have a full idea of what happened, Tommy and Jessica didn't put up a fight when their parents sent them to bed. Will ushered Brittany and Santana into the living room while Holly went into the kitchen to put the tea kettle on. The three sat in silence; Santana and Will watching Brittany bounce her leg up and down as if they were watching an Olympic race. When Holly brought the mugs of tea in, each grabbed one.

"So your mother and I just want to have a talk with the two of you," Will said, hoping some of his teaching tactics could get him through the conversation.

Holly smiled encouraging at the pair before sitting on the edge of the recliner Will was in and sliding next to him.

Santana gulped. Having this conversation, again for that matter was not something she wanted to do. She expressed herself to Brittany and that was hard enough. Placing her mug back on the table, she stood up.

"Sit down San," Will said firmly.

Santana looked to Brittany for help, trying to express with her eyes how much she didn't want to do this right now.

Brittany bit her lip in contemplation. On one hand she wanted everything out in the open but on the other she too didn't want to discuss what has been going on for the last five years. She looked up to Santana with encouraging eyes before gently grabbing her hand in her own. "It's okay," she whispered gently.

Santana let out an aggravated sigh, closing her eyes. She knew she never wanted to do this again so the more people here the better. "Can we call my parents over?" she asked shakily. It was now or never.

Will and Holly looked to one another surprised.

"Of course San," Holly said while grabbing her cell phone from her pocket.

Brittany's eyes widened at the suggestion. She pulled Santana down, wrapping her arm through Santana's in a comforting hold. "San are you sure?" she asked. She didn't think her going over Quinn's when she got upset would lead to all this.

Santana smiled softly. "It's alright Britt. I'm tired of hiding," she said sweetly, reaching up with her hand to brush her pointer finger down Brittany's cheek.

Brittany smiled back, leaning into the touch.

**TBC**

**I would really like to know what you think so far. Reviews are very much appreciated :)**


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